The latest diplomatic step by the United States to restrict the conditions for Hungarian citizens to enter the US can be considered as another unfriendly move. The US is now sanctioning a country with which it has developed excellent cooperation within NATO over the past decades. Moreover, the economic relationship between the two countries is close: 1,700 US companies employ some 110,000 people in Hungary.
But what has happened? In the spring, US President Joe Biden’s Democratic administration terminated the treaty between Hungary and the US on the avoidance of double taxation. The move clearly shows that the US is cahoots with Brussels in attacking Hungary. The empires are trying to teach us a lesson yet again, but we are resisting.
The latest US decision has limited Hungary's participation in its visa waiver program. The US cited security concerns about new Hungarian passports issued between 2011 and 2020. The restriction of Hungary's participation in the Electronic System for Travel Authorization (ESTA) is not the most important factor here, as this in itself will not cause any major problems for Hungarians traveling to the US. According to the decision, the duration of the 90-day residence permit scheme for tourism and business purposes will be reduced from two years to one year and will be available only once in that period. This measure can therefore only be seen as a pointless move by US bureaucracy to harm Hungary.
However, the US request pertaining to the personal details of Hungarian dual citizens from Transcarpathia and Vojvodina was - for security reasons - detrimental to Hungarian national interests. Ukraine does not recognize the institution of dual Hungarian citizenship, and it denies to accept accept Hungarian documents when people are leaving the country.
Growing nationalism in Ukraine does not only take the form of restricting the use of the Hungarian language. A few years ago, the Ukrainian media published hidden camera footage of a citizenship swearing-in ceremony, and a nationalist organization began listing both Hungarian and Transcarpathian officials, whom they accused of holding dual citizenship. And two years ago, a presidential decree stipulated that dual citizens could not hold office and that the national security agencies would list Hungarian citizens in Transcarpathia, banning them from becoming state officials or directors of state-owned companies, or even from holding municipal office. And all this in peacetime, before the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war. Since then, the situation has only worsened.
This is the so-called "democratic" Ukraine that wants to join NATO and the European Union. This is the Ukraine with which America's left-leaning administration is working together in close cooperation, to say the least, but we could go as far as to claim that the Ukrainians are fighting in compliance with American instructions. This is the US waging a proxy war against Russia in Ukraine, using American and European weapons, satellites, intelligence and military advisors. So, this is the US to which Hungary should have handed over the personal details of Transcarpathia's dual Hungarian citizens and, considering every circumstance, run the risk of allowing Ukraine an easy access to these details.
Progressive political activist David Pressman - who, in his second job, serves as US ambassador to Budapest - dropped an extremely cynical remarks a few months ago, when he said the US was ready to deal with the issue of Hungarians in Transcarpathia if it's a serious issue. We can see how important the rights of national minorities are to the current US administration, as opposed to the rights of sexual minorities: not at all. In fact, Hungary is now even being punished for granting citizenship to its ethnic Hungarians who ended up on the other side of the state border through no fault of their own. The US is demanding the details of dual citizens who have suffered for a century under the oppressive policies of majority nationalism. It is shameful how the leftist-liberal administration in the US is refusing to see what's happening in Transcarpathia, punishing Hungary for defending the rights of the Hungarian minority.
In addition, the travel restrictions apply not only to documents issued between 2011 and 2020, but to all Hungarians.
Citing public security risks posed by dual citizens in the US is infuriating. Anyone who has been to the United States has experienced the high level of security at the airports, the thorough screening and the fact that only those who have undergone multiple checks are allowed to enter the country. In fact, ESTA data sheets include questions about basically everything except for the applicant's foot size, so the chances of armies of seasoned criminals invading the United States with Hungarian passports are minimal.
It is especially true in light of the fact that the acquisition of dual citizenship also requires a clean criminal record and proof that the naturalization of the applicant will not present a threat to Hungary's public safety and national security. Moreover, the Orban government has responded to all specific requests from US law enforcement agencies and has taken the necessary criminal measures against those who have broken the law in any way, depriving them of their Hungarian citizenship.
While entry at US airports is rightly strict, the seven million (!) illegal migrants have been allowed to enter the United States freely through the southern border in recent years. Strangely, the Biden administration thinks that they pose no national security or public safety risk the the US.
The governor of Texas sees the situation differently. A few months ago, he ordered a special unit of the National Guard to protect the border directly, in response to the drastic increase in the number of migrants.
It is no exaggeration to say that illegal migration is turning the United States upside down, as criminal gangs from Central and South America are now able to operate almost unhindered throughout the region. Organized crime and the relentless drug trade are also causing huge problems in the US, which is already struggling with social tensions.
While the previous, right-wing Trump administration tried to stop the flood of migrants by all legal means and by building walls, the current left-wing administration is lenient towards the tens of thousands of migrants arriving every day. Their arrival is causing an increasing number of problems in everyday life. So this is how the progressive, open society works in America and in equally troubled France and Germany. Hungary rejects this, nor does it share the pro-war position.
This is why the leftist US administration has repeatedly signaled to Hungary's sovereign, national-minded government that its failure to accept Washington's current geopolitical goals and social policies will cause further complications in the two countries' bilateral relations via various administrative means. Let's hope that this will only be possible until next November, and that a new Republican president will reverse the totally unnecessary decisions of the current administration regarding Hungary, in a spirit of normalcy. This is in the interests of both Americans and Hungarians.
The author is a senior analyst at the Center for Fundamental Rights
Cover photo: The diplomatic activities of US Ambassador David Pressman in Budapest are more than a matter of concern (Photo: Miklos Teknos)
