‘It’s high time we tell our stories: paint them, etch them, carve them, and turn them into stained glass. The Palace of Culture in Marosvásárhely is a signal of triumph—a beautiful window into the culture of Transylvania and of Hungary. We need a shot of that cultural self-awareness and self-confidence on our side of the pond. We need some stained-glass ballads of our own…’
‘Sometimes, I’ve come across Hungarians in the most unlikely places. For example, I saw an article by a certain Rev. Laszlo LaDany from Hong Kong, who translated from Chinese to English. When I contacted him, it turned out that he had a niece in England whom my uncle and his wife were supporting.’
Poles increasingly view support for Ukraine as a burden on the nation, with public sentiment shifting rapidly in a negative direction. This is clearly reflected in the rising popularity of Sławomir Mentzen, the presidential candidate of the right-wing Konfederacja, who is firmly opposed to the war and to unconditional support for Kyiv.
Archaeologists excavating beneath Jerusalem’s Church of the Holy Sepulchre have uncovered traces of an ancient garden, aligning with descriptions in the Gospel of John. The discovery, which includes remnants of olive trees and grapevines, offers new insights into the historical setting of Jesus’s burial site.
‘The Hungarian-owned company Pro Patria Electronics has signed a contract with Estonia to deploy state-of-the-art passive radar systems at the Baltic nation’s border points. However, it’s not the first success of the Hungarian company on the international defence market.’
‘The defence of democracy, human rights, and sovereignty cannot be contingent on political expediency or the geopolitical convenience of targeting smaller or less powerful states. A genuinely united Europe must demonstrate a consistent and impartial commitment to its principles, respecting the agency of all member states.’
‘One of my grandfathers was a Reformed pastor, and the other was a county chief magistrate, so, from the Communist regime’s point of view, we were a “reactionary” family who didn’t accept the people’s democracy. Our family certainly helped us develop a healthy outlook on life. We weren’t spoiled; we got used to difficulties, and we even took them for granted.’
As the Trump administration reshapes transatlantic relations, Hungary has a unique opportunity to position itself as a key player in the new order.
‘There is a historic chance for US–Hungary relations to peak, and it depends in no small part on the two leading players. Even though Hungary is a member of the EU and NATO, in the last two decades, American Democratic administrations have been explicitly hostile towards it…With the US president behind him, Orbán could be much more effective in strengthening his conservative agenda in Brussels, which until now has been an uphill struggle.’
‘The final assessment in terms of the policy of appeasement would be that at the diplomatic and political level, the allies did indeed achieve their goals of buying time, mobilizing, as well as isolating Germany in the first months of the war from either Japan or Italy. They made Germany dependent on Soviet resources to sustain short-term operations, and pushed its economy on the brink of collapse.’
Hungarian Conservative is a quarterly magazine on contemporary political, philosophical and cultural issues from a conservative perspective.