Presentation of Endre Simó at the Warsaw University Debatte Conference on Crises and Resistance in Central and Eastern Europe

(23 November 2014)

Good Morning! Welcome to our Workshop on the Geopolitical context of Central and Eastern Europe! Thanks for my invitation I interpretate as an interest for our political activity in Hungary.

We are living a period of historical transition. Western Civilization with its globalized capitalism is loosing weight and force, and a new Economical and Military pole of power is emerging in the East. It’s very difficult to predict, how long will be this transition and what will be its result: will it be a radical change of civilization like as we have known in the History, or a synthesys of different economical, ethical and social values generating new forms of living together. We see, that the old is loosing the force to rule the World as before, while the new is acquiring force to prevail. Western Civilization is doing all possible to block this transition, and to prolong her own existence. Already shee has the force also to try new territorial expansions blocked by East. The fight for the future, also when military, is caracterized by the deepening of economical interdependency. That is the context in which the former Socialist countries of Eastern and Central Europe, members of NATO and EU, are facing the dilemma, how to continue in the new situation of military confrontation in Europe, proving that History did’nt finish.

The Civil War in Ukraine and the conflict for Ukraine between East and West have deeply divided the Western Alliance, including its eastern members. Some of them have opted for the policy of confrontation wanted by the United States and the United Kingdom, others have refused to host foreign NATO troops in their territories. Hungary I come from, is following a careful policy vis a vis of Russia, Poland and the Baltic States on the contrary, seem to forget the importance of good relations with the giant of East Europe, and they identify themselves with the trans-Atlantic instructions, albeit Western Europe itself is not doing so. Tipical expression of this uncertainty and stand off and on policy is that of Hungarian Prime Minister, who after the last NATO summit in Wales has told, that his government is a hawk in the field of military, and a dove in the field of economy regarding East.

The Hungarian Community for Peace, organised by the Hungarian Social Forum I am representing here, has refused this logic as unacceptable. We have invited Mr. Viktor Orbán to give an answer why does he think that the eventual dislocation in Hungary of foreign NATO troops, or the grant of hinterland for the military deployment against Russia, or arm selling to Kiev could remain without economical consequences for Hungary, including the gaz supply. Caractheristic of this double face policy is that at the same time, our government affirms that „The policy of sanctions does not mean solution on the ukranian conflict”, it has approved all NATO sanctions against Russia, with the consequence of russian ban also on the import of hungarian food products.

I would like to give the main features of the civic policy Hungarian Social Forum is representing in the context I have described. We tell, that

1. The National interest of Hungary is for Peace and the Freedom of the Peoples.

2. Is national interest to persist with the „opening to East” policy of the government, as responsible members of EU and NATO.

3. The full right inclusion of Russia onto the system of european economic cooperation, instead of his isolation. (Let me inform you on this point, that at the European Popular Party meeting of Albufeira (Portugal) on 16 June, Hungary’s PM has proposed a Pan-European Conference with the participation of Russia for the conclusion of an agreement of living together with Russia for the next 20-25 years. I think, we must support all kinds of initiatives helping the Peace and the peaceful convivence. I consider our interest the easeing of the historical transition I have mentioned at the beginning.)

4. We also consider National interest the creation of a collective european security system with the inclusion of Russia, instead of confrontation NATO policy with Russia.

5. We defined hungarian national interest to pave the way of cooperation with the newly forming Estern pole of power embracing the euro-asian customs union (Russia, Belorussia, Kazakhstan, Armenia), the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (Russia, China, Kazakhstan, with India, Iran, Mongolia, Pakistan as its potential members. Hereby I only mention the newly forming international monetary system in the frame of BRICS.)

5. Finally we have told, that Western Alliance must revise his anti-Russia and anti-East strategy.

Concerning the Civil War in Ukraine we have proposed a complex peaceful political solution, giving social content to the Peace. We have started from the agreement of February 21 signed by all the ukranian sides in conflict and we told, that the agreement must be respected and implemented. As you know the signatories of this paper have declared their intention to create a coalition, to form a national unity government, to open the way to a Constitutional reform balancing the central power. They have also decided that the authorities will not impose a state of emergency and will not use force against the opposition, finally they have agreed on the normalisation of life in the cities and villages. Starting from the 21st February agreement our Comunity for Peace has proposed to transform Ukraine into a Federation with a Constitution granting Equal Rights, Freedom and Autonomy to the peoples composing Ukraine, included the recognition of the Right of Separation, that is the Self-determination.

We propose neutrality to Ukraine, also because it is our own interest. We want that Ukraine lives in good relations with both East and West. The same we wish to ourselves. We, Hungarians and other Nations of Central and Eastern Europe we must avoid to remain between two fires. We, Hungarians do not want to become once more victims, like as we have been so many times in our History.

The principle of Freedom and Self-determination of the peoples have offered an important community of interest between Hungary and Russia, and between the Russian and the Hungarian minority living in Ukraine. At the International Conference by the title „Hungarians for Peace”, held in Budapest on 21 September with the participation of all Hungarian minorities living out of Hungary’s national borders, so in Sub-Carpathian Region of Ukraine, Transsylvania, Serbia, Croatia and Slovakia, we have reaffirmed the principle that „No people can be free if he oppresses others”, consequently Ukraine would be free, and could have right to Self-determination when she respected the Freedom of the peoples, nationalities and national minorities forming the country. There is no just and lasting Peace based on the oppression and the subjugation by arms of the peoples. At our opinion the present ruling group of Kiev has deployed military against his own people, wanting to impose his will to Russian people living in Eastern Ukraine. Kiev is using as gun-meat hungarian and other minorities young people having nothing to see with his war. Many young people of the Hungarian minority living in Sub-Carpathian Region and of other nationalities have been sent to the Eastern front and got home in coffins. NATO is helping Kiev with military, finance and media-propaganda. Masks have fallen from those, who are chattering Human Rights and Rights of Freedom, and they deny the same Rights to 7 millions and a half of Russians, more or less 200 thousands of Hungarians and to more than 50 other ethnics of Ukraine. NATO is supporting the anti-russian policy of Kiev, because he wants to take possession of Ukraine, and to expand his sphere of influence up to the russian border. NATO has violated Jalta and Malta. They have found in Petro Porosenko a people ready to confrontation with Russians, also because as big enterprising he is more interested in profit making than in the Freedom of the Peoples. NATO is co-operating in anti-russian sense with the most dark ukranian forces of extreme right. Sun is sinking over the liberal ideal of Freedom. Particularly important was on our International Conference of Budapest the testimony of the representative from Sub-Carpathian Region: „Kiev wants a State of Nation in Ukraine, and for this reason he is conducing a violent policy of assimilation. That is a fascist-style policy which was part the suspension of the law allowing the free use of minorities mother languages, the closure of schools teaching in mother tongues in the settlements where minority does not reach 50 pc of the population, the ban of Rights of Autonomy for Hungarians and for the other minorities, and the use of weapons against those, who do not want to live in such a fascist State” – he told.

At the end of my presentation I would like to share with you a very important experience we have acquired not only in our fight for Social and Human Rights, but also in our struggle for Peace: at our experience it is possible and necessary to act together with people of different ideologies and political options, ready to fight for Peace and for the Freedom of the Peoples. The Budapest meeting was an example how the civic Society could reach an all european initiative for Peace with the common interest of people of different ideological orientations.

I think, the Civic Diplomacy should be strenghtened at all european level, in a moment of increasing tensions in Europe with its consequences to whole the World.

For this reason we propose to organise a European Civic Peace Conference for giving voice to the common will of our peoples. We, Peace loving people, we must put in act our moral force, our force of mobilisation to sit at the table the sides in opposition, and open new ways and frames of dialogue and peaceful co-operation, and avoid by this a military confrontation in Europe.  Let us launch a european civic society call to the States, telling that the civic  society wait for political solutions and social perspective. The Seventyth’s of last Century Hungary was the starter of the Helsinki process, which sat at the table East and West with the intention to find a common security system, new economical and coltural co-operation, and the implementation of Human Rights. The Hungarian Social Forum and the Hungarian Community for Peace propose here, in Warsaw the Renaissance of that noble tradition and launch a Call to the European Civic Society, to all Peace loving people and political forces, to develop a common initiative because such a Conference between East and West take place!  Let us put at the head of this process starting from this conference! We propose that this historical civic meeting be hosted by Budapest or by Warsaw and become the animator of a Helsinki-like Pan-European Conference on Security and Co-operation, opening new horizons.