Page:NATIONAL INTELLIGENCE SURVEY 19 HUNGARY COUNTRY PROFILE CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110037-3.pdf/23

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APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110037-3


are strong, as was shown in February 1972 when Kadar was hastily called onto the Kremlin carpet to further justify the NEM.


With regard to the other nearby Communist states, Hungary strikes an amicable but less subservient pose. Its attitude is colored by the memory of the Trianon settlement following World War I. Hungarians have neither forgotten nor forgiven their losses, particularly the forfeiture (to Romania) of picturesque Transilvania, the historic bastion of Hungarian independence. On this account, the man in the street is disposed to grieve for his "oppressed" Magyar brothers so long departed from Hungary itself.


On an official level, needless to say, Hungarians pay regular tribute to the largely symbolic treaties of friendship with each of the Communist neighbors, as well as to CEMA and the Warsaw pact. But they also stress Hungary's primary responsibility for its own affairs. With the interventionist-minded and militantly conservative East German regime, Hungary at most has "correct" relations. The Hungarian minority in Transilvania and Bucharest's maverick foreign policy are strong irritants in the Hungarian-Romanian juncture, but attempts in recent years at a better understanding appear to have borne some fruit. Poland under Gierek and Czechoslovakia under Husak are less well regarded than formerly, but allowance has been made for an improvement here too.


The regime's attitude toward Western nations is now cautiously positive—a far cry from the time when the "capitalist-imperialists" were the scapegoats for everything from a small incident to the 1956 revolt himself. In the interest of retrieving Hungary's image—shattered when the 1956 revolt was crushed—and expanding his government's area of maneuverability, Kadar extended his liberalization program westward. Cultural and scientific agreements have been negotiated. High-level official visits have been promoted. The frontier with natural Austria has been partially disarmed. Western literature has been made available. And the famous Hungarian hospitality has been offered to increasing numbers of Western tourists. Ensuing good will aids in Hungary's deeper efforts to exploit Western technology and vie for sales in Western markets, both vital facets of the NEM.



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APPROVED FOR RELEASE: 2009/06/16: CIA-RDP01-00707R000200110037-3