On Tuesday, June 11th, the U.S. Ambassador to Budapest criticized the Hungarian government for maintaining close political and commercial ties with the Chinese Communist Party, emphasizing that such relationships often come with conditions and the benefits gained often come at the cost of sovereignty.
According to Reuters, on Tuesday, U.S. Ambassador to Hungary, David Pressman, delivered a speech at the American Chamber of Commerce in Hungary, where he denounced Hungary’s dealings with China as being based on opaque and “corruption-ridden” contracts.
He also criticized the Hungarian government for allowing Chinese workers to enter Hungary, as well as for the security cooperation that permits Chinese police to be stationed in Hungary.
Pressman mentioned that the U.S. also deals with China but in a transparent manner with clear rules, taking into full consideration the security interests of its allies.
Recently, the relationship between the U.S. and Hungary has deteriorated for other reasons, including Hungary’s delaying approval of Sweden joining NATO (which was eventually passed in February this year), and despite the ongoing conflict in Ukraine, the Hungarian government maintains good relations with Russian authorities.
“We all know that Hungary cannot have it both ways in the long term. It cannot benefit from the community of democratic nations while remaining unbound. It cannot exercise rights without shouldering responsibilities,” Pressman said.
A month ago, the leader of the Chinese Communist Party visited Hungary, calling the China-Hungary relationship a “all-weather strategic partnership.” Currently, Hungary has become an important trade and investment partner for China, while some other EU countries are considering reducing their dependency on China.