“Hungarian politics is becoming increasingly understood and acknowledged in the United States”, Government Spokesperson Zoltán Kovács said in a statement to Hungarian news agency MTI from Washington on Thursday. Mr. Kovács also spoke about the letter criticising Hungary issued by Democratic Party legislators, which he views as part of the American election campaign.
“In the United States, more and more people are understanding the work being performed by the Hungarian Government, including action with relation to persecuted Christians, our economic results and the issue of illegal migration, and we can state that more and more people are also acknowledging the fact that during the past eight years the Hungarian Government has been representing its standpoint extremely consistently”, the Government Spokesperson said, summarising his four-day visit to the U.S. capital.
Mr. Kovács held discussions at several research institutes, foundations, congressional institutions and media. For instance, amongst others he visited the Hudson Institute, held talks with conservative organisation Judicial Watch, the Heritage Foundation, which prepares background materials for Congress, the International Republican Institute and the Council on Foreign Relations. In addition, he also visited the editors of Politico and Fox News.
In his statement, the Government Spokesperson said the meetings were part of joint work that had begun years ago, and that the tone of these conversations have changed decidedly in recent years. “The increasing understanding with relation to Hungary is a great help in enabling us to talk about what’s important: the political, economic and other challenges that we face”, Mr. Kovács stressed.
In reply to a question concerning whether the Hungarian Government had received any criticism, for instance with relation to the issue of illegal migration, Mr. Kovács underlined: “They have understood Hungary’s position and are not disputing the legitimacy of the fact that Hungary is defending Europe’s borders while standing on a foundation of sovereignty and fulfilling its obligations”.
However, the Government Spokesperson also drew attention to the fact that Hungary cannot shy away from foreign political battles either, with relation to which he referred to the statements criticising Hungary made by former Democratic Party presidential candidate Hillary Clinton, and the letter by 22 Democratic Party legislators also criticising Hungary and the state of the Hungarian press, which the left-wing politicians wrote to the U.S. Secretary of State. “We can see that the political campaign that is being run against Hungary by the international left, which is not only European, in view of the fact that internationalism transcends European borders and has also arrived here, in the United States, is continuing”, the Government Spokesperson said.
Mr. Kovács spoke about the fact that this week former presidential candidate Hillary Clinton held a lecture in Oxford in which she not only criticised British Prime Minister Theresa May and Brexit, but also Tory party MPs and Hungary, explaining that in his opinion this is an obvious indication of the fact that the effects of the American mid-term election campaign are also appearing in Europe.
According to the Government Spokesperson, “there is no doubt that the international left and those who call themselves liberal are trying to make Hungary play the role of black sheep, or some kind of whipping boy”. Mr. Kovács also underlined: “It is no accident that the letter by Democratic Party legislators was made public the day after Clinton voiced criticism of Hungary. “The same words, the same expressions, and the same slanders were spoken against Hungary, with the obvious intent to gain some kind of political advantage here in the U.S. or in Europe”, he stated.
“As is absolutely obvious in the case of Hillary Clinton, the content of her statements are provided by the system of institutions that stand behind her, including the organisations financed by George Soros, and it is also absolutely obvious that the steps, and coordinated and organised operations of these same organisations are behind the move by the Democrats”, Mr. Kovács emphasised.
“One of the experiences gained from the current talks is precisely the fact that within American political life these accusations are treated as they should be”, he underlined, explaining that his negotiating partners “know precisely what this is about”. “It also became clear with relation to the appointment of new Supreme Court judge Brett Kavanaugh, how NGOs or George Soros, whose attempts to influence events were cited by President Donald Trump, interfere in party politics”, he declared.
The Government Spokesperson said that during the course of practically all of his meetings, the role of George Soros in influencing political processes was given major emphasis.
“We must be aware of one of the asymmetric elements of the situation, namely the fact that the Democrats and those who support them are able to be much louder in view of the fact that the liberal media is behind them and the support of the overbearing liberal media presence that is to all intents and purposes globally influencing political public opinion with the news and opinions that they represent”, he also explained.
“Political conversations now include the recognition that world politics is being increasingly determined by the antagonism that exists between the globalists and the sovereigntists”, the Government Spokesperson stated. “It is an interesting and affirming development that the President of the United States is also stating that global governance is out of the question and that states must be able to make decisions based on their own sovereignty, for instance with relation to illegal migration or other issues that affect the functioning of states”, Mr. Kovács said.