This year’s St Stephen’s Day celebration promises the most spectacular fireworks in its history, with over 45,000 light and pyrotechnic effects spread across a nearly five-kilometre display area, accompanied by a drone show and light projections.
A Forsa poll shows Germany’s AfD ahead of the CDU, 26 to 24 per cent, the biggest lead since February’s election. The result mirrors a rightward trend across Europe, with Austria’s FPÖ, France’s National Rally and Reform UK also dominating national polls.
The Sziget Festival drew 416,000 visitors this year, a 5 per cent increase over 2024, thanks to fresh concepts, a younger audience, and diverse programming. Despite the boost, the event still fell short of profitability but showed improved results.
‘Bismarck’s campaign for a “good treaty” with Russia reflected the notion that antagonizing the Russians could be as disastrous as waking a bear from hibernation—an apt metaphor for what the U.S.–NATO expansionist approach eventually did…Bismarck emphasized the urgency of not only respecting Russia’s interests but also recognizing it as a crucial player on the global political stage…’
European leaders’ obsession with the Munich analogy ahead of the Trump–Putin summit is turning history into a political crutch. Leaders warn of appeasement, yet ignore the radically different context of today’s war, risking self-imposed irrelevance in peace talks and handing strategic advantage to Washington and Moscow.
On the night of 8 August, the Baltic Air Defence Readiness Unit of the Hungarian Defence Forces was called on its their first live Quick Reaction Alert (QRA) scramble, after an unidentified aircraft not willing to engage in radio communications with air traffic control entered the intranational air space over the Baltic Sea. The aircraft was identified as Russian, and was successfully captured by Hungarian fighter jets.
‘China’s engagement in the Western Balkans is evidently part of a comprehensive global strategy aimed first at expanding its economic presence and second at increasing its geopolitical influence. Its interest in the region offers medium-term economic opportunities for Western Balkan countries, while also posing significant long-term challenges for the EU.’
‘UNESCO’s programming in the areas of education and the social and human sciences, combined with the work of the UN Office of the High Commissioner on Human Rights and international human rights treaty body committees, transformed the aspirational UDHR into a “living” instrument for realizing Huxley’s progressive vision.’
‘It’s a place that can be filled with life and possibility. I’d like the Hungarian House to welcome even those who may have visited before, but didn’t feel it was for them. I don’t just want to celebrate Hungarian heritage in America; I want to somewhat shape its present and future.’
Hungary’s public finances remain stable as the government pursues Europe’s largest tax reduction programme while staying committed to fiscal discipline, debt reduction, and keeping the budget deficit within its revised target.