The President of the Hungarian Institute of International Affairs outlined that while the European economy was sluggish in recent years, Hungary was able to continue to grow its foreign direct investments, in large part thank to its relations with China. The author believes that this approach would be advisable to follow for the whole of the European continent as well.
Hungary as a small country does not make decisions for global order as a whole, but it has a unique message for many other small and medium-sized countries that are in the same situation as Hungary, with the same interests in openness to other countries, connections with other countries, their existing alliances, and which also have an interest in preserving their culture and identity, Gladden Pappin suggests.
A panel on post-liberalism at MCC Feszt 2025 featuring Patrick Deneen, Gladden Pappin, and Chad Pecknold has drawn sharp criticism from liberal thinkers on X, who condemned the speakers’ praise for Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and his model of illiberal democracy.
At MCC Feszt 2025 in Esztergom, panellists Patrick Deneen, Chad Pecknold, Gladden Pappin, and István Kiss discussed whether we are living in a post-liberal age. They argued that liberalism is collapsing under its own contradictions, while Hungary’s national policy offers a compelling alternative grounded in tradition, family, and sovereignty.
‘Thanks to the strong relationship between President Trump and Prime Minister Orbán, there is real space—on the ground, in government, in business, and among ordinary citizens—to build something meaningful,’ US Chargé d’Affaires ad interim Robert Palladino remarked during a discussion on US–Hungary relations with President of the Hungarian Institute of International Affairs Gladden Pappin.
The European Parliamentary election is taking place next month, and our print magazine has just released a special issue all about the major political event. Among other excellent pieces we have Fidesz co-founder, MP Zsolt Németh writing about Brussels and Budapest accusing each other of failing to live up to the Union’s democratic values; as well as President of the Hungarian Institute of International Affairs Gladden Pappin looking the parallels between the foundation of the United States of America and the attempted foundation of a ‘United States of Europe’. You can pick up the latest edition of Hungarian Conservative magazine at your local bookstore or newspaper stand, or you can subscribe to our quarterly magazine on our website to make sure you never miss an issue.
The deepening of cultural dialogue can be the solution to the domestic tensions in France, Hungarian Institute of International Affairs Gladden Pappin told the audience at a roundtable discussion titled The BLM-Moment of France? – Political and Security Implications of the Riots in France, held by the institute on Friday, 7 July in Budapest, Hungary.
‘[T]he…West…has finally reached the Baudrillardian singularity, and become completely absorbed by a self-referential simulation that its own leaders have created. This simulation continues to insulate the leaders of the West, but as rays of underlying reality start to shine through the cracks in the edifice, most people conclude that our political systems are becoming increasingly “fake”.’
A series of high-level meetings between Hungarian and US government officials continues, as Balázs Orbán, Political Director of the Hungarian Prime Minister met with US Vice President JD Vance on Tuesday at the White House to discuss bilateral cooperation.
‘US policy towards Central Europe is grounded in realism, respect, and renewed engagement,’ US Chargé d’Affaires Robert Palladino emphasized, speaking on US–Central European relations at the Central European Summit, jointly organized by the Oeconomus Economic Research Foundation and the Centre for Fundamental Rights in Budapest.