Our Friends in Hungary

The media moans, “quagmire.” The French/German/Russian chorus sings, “we can do it better” – off key. The UN screams, “It’s YOUR fault we hired Ba’ath intelligence agents to guard our compound. After all, we couldn’t have anyone think we were cooperating with YOU.” And just about anyone who ever told anyone anything about anything bellows, “We told you so,” without actually telling anyone anything remotely useful.

So much heat and so little light. But amid the cacophony, there is Hungary.

The media moans, “quagmire.” The French/German/Russian chorus sings, “we can do it better” – off key. The UN screams, “It’s YOUR fault we hired Ba’ath intelligence agents to guard our compound. After all, we couldn’t have anyone think we were cooperating with YOU.” And just about anyone who ever told anyone anything about anything bellows, “We told you so,” without actually telling anyone anything remotely useful.

So much heat and so little light. But amid the cacophony, there is Hungary.

This week’s report that the U.S. is seeking to train up to 28,000 Iraqi police officers at a military base in Hungary reminds us that some countries have been providing light all along. They should be recognized for their contribution to the war against terrorists and the states that harbor and support them, and to the freedom of the Iraqi people.

Beginning last fall, the Hungarian government issued statements supporting U.S. concerns about WMD under Saddam’s control and pledging support for U.S. efforts to employ a “military solution” even without an additional Security Council resolution. Foreign Minister Laszlo Kovacs said, “Acting without a UN mandate is still more preferable than simply waiting for the tragic consequences of Saddam Hussein’s military buildup.”

In November, Hungary made Taszar Air Base available to the U.S. Army for training the INC’s Free Iraqi Forces. (Taszar was also used as a U.S. base for missions in Bosnia and Kosovo.) In February, Hungary was among the eight European nations signing a letter of support for U.S. action in Iraq, prompting a second letter from 10 additional countries. The 18 – including 15 former communist nations – have formed the backbone of the coalition of the willing.

More recently, the Hungarian National Assembly voted unanimously to honor the Pentagon’s request that Hungary send 300 transport troops to Iraq to help with the stabilization effort. Defense Minister Ferenc Juhasz called it, “A chance for Hungarians to take part in the creation of a new world order.”

And it isn’t just on the subject of Iraq that Hungary has supported American policy efforts. Foreign Minister Kovacs declined to meet with Yasser Arafat while in Israel for an EU seminar. During the trip, he met with Prime Minister Sharon, President Moshe Katsav and Foreign Minister Silvan Shalom. Kovacs tried to meet with Abu Mazen, but the meeting was canceled when it appeared that Arafat would be there. Kovacs has issued a formal invitation for Abu Mazen to visit him in Budapest instead.

It is true that the U.S. often appears to be working alone against threats compounded by the shrinking of the time and space between us and the enemies of freedom and liberty. But often we are not, and the U.S. should acknowledge a profound debt to countries such as Hungary that stand with us in a fight that will determine the future for all of us.