Revisionist remarks only harm Hungarian minority

Heti Válasz warns that the comments of Fidesz MP Zoltán Kőszegi concerning territorial revision are not exactly a laughing matter, even if the government has distanced itself from his “personal opinion”.

Zoltán Kőszegi spoke at an annual cultural event, organized by Fidesz-friendly groups in Transylvania. He suggested that the time will soon be ripe for a revision of the 1920 Trianon treaty, which deprived Hungary of two thirds of its pre-First World territory, leaving some 3 million Hungarians beyond its borders.  Kőszegi suggested that Hungary “will be strong enough” to take back these regions. Although the Foreign Ministry stated clearly that the government does not share Kőszegi’s opinion, Kőszegi also felt the need to explain his words last week. Hungary might call, he suggested, for an independent Transylvania.

In Heti Válasz, Bálint Ablonczy dismisses Kőszegi’s statements. In a light-hearted piece, he says he initially attributed the comment that “if Fidesz gets stronger, and Hungary also grows stronger – economically, as well as in other ways – an official revision process could be started” to the jovial atmosphere of the Hungarian youth gathering in Transylvania.  Even Zoltán Balczó, MP of the far-right Jobbik party has warned that such proposals are not on the agenda, he notes. Kőszegi is both a Fidesz MP and mayor of Dabas, a smallish town to the east of Budapest. In his attempted clarification, he said that he was talking about exclusively peaceful means. He added that his remarks were an attempt to underline that it should be possible by now to discuss Trianon without taboos. He ended his interview with the suggestion that neither a Swiss type cantonal federation, nor an independent Transylvania is completely unimaginable. Ablonczy concludes from this that Kőszegi, unfortunately, does indeed mean what he said, although what he says is somewhat obscure. The two comments, that a border revision is possible within eight years, and the claim that the Trianon treaty was unjust, are light years away from each other, and this is widely recognized. As for Kőszegi’s admission that the fate of Europe is unlikely to be decided by military force, Ablonczy jokes that such analysis is commendable from a PE teacher. But it is no joke when Kőszegi states that Transylvania should become an independent country. He may be elaborating his ideas in Hungary, but it will be Hungarians in Transylvania who will suffer for his remarks, the commentator concludes.

Tags: Romania, Transylvania, Trianon