16 November marks the day when Rear Admiral, and later Regent, Miklós Horthy marched into Budapest in 1919, symbolically ending the Hungarian Soviet Republic. This remains a controversial event to this very day: while on the one hand, it ended a period of chaos and dictatorship, on the other hand, it bolstered the so-called White Terror.

On the day before Pásztor’s death, the commemoration of the Vojvodina massacre of ethnic Hungarians in WWII took place in Csurog on Sunday, 29 October.

The conflict most likely broke out between a group of migrants and an organized human smuggler group. It went on for hours into the early morning, terrifying the residents of Horgos. This is actually the second similar incident in just a few weeks at the Serbian-Hungarian border.

The national narrative that Hungary is the bulwark of Christianity and Western Civilization was formed in the battles won on the lands of present-day Serbian Vojvodina, also known as Vajdaság in Hungarian.

The National Assembly of Bulgaria passed a new, €10.2 per megawatt-hour tax on Russian gas coming through the TurkStream pipeline. President Aleksandar Vučić of Serbia and Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó of Hungary have condemned the decision.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, speaking in Granada at a meeting of European Union member state leaders, asserted that there is no hope for an agreement among the heads of state and government on the issue of migration.

The idea of founding a country from scratch in order to establish a homeland for a nation that does not exist yet is an act that would be seen by most as patently insane. But looking a little further into the past, it should be clear to all that there is indeed such precedent; and a very notable one, in fact: the United States.

Multiple reports have confirmed that there were a number of incidents at the Serbian-Hungarian border in the past weeks with automatic weapons being fired and brandished by human smugglers.

Count István Tisza is still blamed by liberal and left-wing historiographers for Hungary entering WWI, despite clear evidence of his anti-war stance. It is rather anachronistic to hold Tisza to democratic standards that did not exist at the time and with the wisdom of hindsight: the knowledge of how the war ended.

Groups of 140–180 individuals have been attempting to cross the border fence using ladders in the areas of Ásotthalom and Mórahalom, with human traffickers waiting on the Hungarian side, ready to move those who manage to cross towards the West. ‘The police and border patrol units are engaged in proper combat,’ according to the PM’s Chief Security Advisor György Bakondi.

Over this past weekend that saw the 20 August celebrations and the grand opening of the Budapest World Athletics Championships, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán met with the leaders of several countries, creating a one-off diplomacy summit in Hungary.

‘One might conclude that only rogue states wage war without declaring it, yet the Korean War, the Vietnam War, and the prolonged military involvements in Afghanistan and Iraq were not preceded by a declaration of war issued by the United States Congress either.’

Speaking at the farewell of the Hungarian police contingent heading to Serbia, Bence Rétvári reminded that Hungary is already engaged in a trilateral cooperation with Austrian police, jointly protecting the southern borders of the European Union. The success of this police collaboration is evident in the significant number of illegal migrants that have been apprehended during recent times.

Why did those who had the power to do so not pull in the reins? How could the civilised European populaces celebrate the war? Why did they not choose the path of peace, progress, and constructiveness? On the 109th anniversary of the start of the First World War, and in the shadow of the war of our time, these are the questions historians must answer.

Another summit of the intergovernmental cooperation between Austria, Hungary, and Serbia took place on 7 July in Vienna, Austria. Apart from the heads of state and government, the three nations’ ministers of foreign affairs, and domestic and law enforcement leaders also took part in the conference, held at the Austrian Chancellor’s residence. The Vienna Summit was organised in the wake of Hungary and Poland officially objecting to the migration package at the European Commission’s 30 June session.

Hungary believes that the problems should be solved not at Europe’s borders but at their places of origin, Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky said. He emphasised that under the changed circumstances, the development of the Hungarian armed forces is progressing dynamically, confidently, and systematically.

The most significant Hungarian Christian response to Pope Francis’ Economy of Francesco initiative and his peace mission has been the launching of the ‘Noon Bell – Pulsatio Meridiana, the Voice of Oikophilia’ regenerative economic platform (PM), which is planned to be listed on the Budapest Stock Exchange.

On 28 June 1914, 109 years ago today, at around 11 o’clock in the morning, a 20-year-old anarchist assassin, Gavrilo Princip, fired several shots at the Archduke of the Austro–Hungarian Empire and his wife. The Sarajevo assassination became the casus belli for the ‘Great War’, as it was called back then, i.e., the First World War.

PM Orbán wrote that the release of the three Kosovo police officers charged with illegal weapon possession in Serbia is a testament to the ‘mutual commitment to the peace and stability of the Balkans’. However, tensions in the region still seem to be on the rise.

During the meeting in Palić, twelve cooperation agreements were signed between the Hungarian and Serbian parties. These include the establishment of the Hungarian-Serbian Strategic Cooperation Council, as well as agreements on diplomatic cooperation, border protection, border control, the construction of an oil pipeline between Hungary and Serbia, European integration, exchange and protection of classified data, infrastructure, agriculture, defence, and customs cooperation.

‘My Serbian colleague informed me that it finally stopped raining today, so they are assessing the situation, and we expect their response tomorrow. We are ready to help,’ the Foreign Minister wrote on his Facebook page.

Hungary has spent 650 billion Hungarian forints on the defence of the southern border, the construction and reinforcement of the border fence, and its continuous protection.

‘Despite their injuries, the Hungarian soldiers have shown brave commitment, and many of those who were able to do so have already returned to their posts,’ the Hungarian defence minister said after the clashes between KFOR troops and local Serbs in North Kosovo. The minister stressed that the stability of the Western Balkans is very important to Hungary, which is why it is present in the region not only diplomatically and economically, but also militarily in the framework of the KFOR mission.

The clashes began on Friday and continued on Monday morning as a result of ongoing unrest following the recent elections, where ethnic Albanian politicians won mayorships. Confrontations broke out between ethnic Serbian protesters taking to the street and the police near the municipal offices of three towns. 20 Hungarian soldiers were injured.

State Secretary Potápi reminded that the history of Hungary would have been unthinkable without the Jews in the early Middle Ages, and then later, from the 18th century until the mid-20th century. Jewish people ‘not only sacrificed their lives and blood for Hungary in the wars of the 19th and 20th centuries, but also made a significant contribution to Hungary’s economic and cultural development.’

The minister reported at a press conference following the meeting of the Hungarian-Serbian Economic Joint Committee that the contract for the planned oil pipeline, to be established in cooperation between Mol and Transnafta, will be signed at the 20 June government summit.

Bence Rétvári recalled at the farewell ceremony of the Hungarian police contingent heading to Serbia that a mission was launched in January this year in cooperation with Austrian and Serbian police officers to jointly protect the southern borders of Serbia to combat illegal migration and human smugglers.

‘Hungarian-Serbian strategic energy cooperation is one of the guarantees that Hungary’s supply will remain secure in the next period,’ the minister said.

Sigismund of Luxembourg, the ruler who ascended the Hungarian throne in 1387, and whose first wife was the granddaughter of Charles I, could, of course, have heard of his predecessor’s order, and perhaps even followed his example when he himself founded the Order of the Dragon in 1408.

On Saturday, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán visited Belgrade, for talks with Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić.