After the Wave-Trough, Upwards Again
Interview with Hungary's Ambassador to Washington

Gábor Horváth

“For Hungary’s success and progress, the trans-Atlantic and the European systems of relations are equally important," says András Simonyi. Hungary’s new Ambassador to Washington presented his credentials to U.S. President George W. Bush on Wednesday afternoon, then gave an interview to Népszabadság.

Népszabadság: You arrived at your new post two and a half weeks ago and since then you’ve met a lot of people. How do you see Hungarian – U.S. relations?

Ambassador Simonyi: It is my firm belief that for Hungary’s success, modernization, progress and security, the strong trans-Atlantic and European relations are equally important. The two are not competing with but rather complementing each other. The cultivation of relations always requires constant attention and maintenance from all politicians -- government and opposition alike. In the maintenance [of Hungarian - U.S. relations] there was perhaps a little wave-trough, but I think we must work now so that, as a result of this attention, relations start a dynamic increase. If you think my answer is too diplomatic, I can tell you, we definitely have things to make up for; as an ally, we performed unsatisfactorily. It is in our best interests that we be a stable ally that is also capable of military cooperation.

NSZ: Where do you see possibilities for progress?

Ambassador Simonyi: I set myself goals in three areas. One is security policy cooperation, the fight against terrorism. The second is promotion of economic relations. Obviously, the two are related. If there is no security in Hungary, if our country is not a forceful ally, investors’ trust may waver. U.S. companies and investors have played a significant role in the fact that, in the past 12 years, Hungary has come out on top of the countries where a change of regime took place. I want U.S. investments to continue to come to Hungary. As an addition to that, I also want Hungarian small and medium-size businesses to appear in the American market. The third "basket" contains cultural and non-governmental cooperation, as well as relations with Hungarian-Americans. In this latter regard, I do not only expect the continuation of a fair and correct relationship but I also plan to take into consideration generational change, reaching out to Hungarians who have come to the United States since 1990, and many of whom have achieved considerable success here.

NSZ: How can Hungary effectively support the fight against terrorism? As regards Iraq, do we have to choose whether to be with America or with Europe?

Ambassador Simonyi: We do not have to choose. In my opinion, most of the allies share the United States’ view that terrorism must be eradicated and the Iraqi problem must be solved. Currently, there is no talk about the contents and the form of the Hungarian contribution. One thing is certain: The United States will not ask, and Hungary will not offer, deployment of troops for whom lack of sufficient equipment, preparation, or training would pose a risk. There are many ways to demonstrate the cohesion of the alliance, and we have not reached the point yet where we need to discuss them. It is feasible that, in a given situation, Hungary would provide relief on the Balkans, and I don’t rule out that even in Afghanistan. We all hope that it will not be necessary to force Iraq with weapons to destroy its arsenal of biological, chemical and nuclear weapons threatening Europe and the U.S.

NSZ: What kind of an image do Americans have of Hungary?

Ambassador Simonyi: America is trying to find Hungary’s new image. The image of the past is fading. They are trying to find out what the Hungary of the future will be like. That’s where we have to make a connection. We would like to be an ambitious, forward-looking country with a firm opinion that is a model for the Central European region, embraces new technologies, and is open to the world. That’s what I want to work on. I see clearly that some of these things are going to cost money. There is a fierce competition between countries in Washington. Suffice it to say that the walls of the Slovak Embassy in Washington are covered with original Andy Warhol paintings.

(Népszabadság, September 27, 2002)