96
Budapest Times, ‘‘Paks Data to Be Classified for 30 Years
The Budapest Times, Mar. 6,
2015.
550
Zoltan Simon, ‘‘Orba´n Says He Seeks to End Liberal Democracy in Hungary
Bloomberg, July 28, 2014. Daniel Hegedus, Nations in Transit 2017 Hungary Chapter
Freedom House, 2017.
552
GLOBSEC Policy Institute,
GLOBSEC Trends 2017: Mixed Messages and Signs of Hope from Central and Eastern Europe, at 13 (Jan. 8, 2017).
553
Ibid. at 20.
554
Ibid. at 23.
555
See European Union External Action Service, Questions
and Answers about the East StratCom Task Force https://eeas.europa.eu/headquarters/headquarters-homepage/2116/-ques- tions-and-answers-about-the-east-stratcom-task-force—en (visited Dec. 14, 2017); see also Chapter. the Paks nuclear deal, in which the Russian nuclear operator
Rosatom was awarded a sole source contract to construct two plants, and the Hungarian parliament subsequently passed legislation which would keep details related to the deal classified for 30 years.
549
Since returning to power in 2010, Orba´n has embraced the concept of illiberal democracy modeled on the sovereign democracy advanced by Vladislav Surkov in Russia.
550
As Orba´n deepens relations with Russia abroad, he has steadily eroded the democratic process at home, where Hungary’s political opposition has been marginalized and civil society watchdogs have a diminished voice.
551
Without the critical scrutiny provided by political opposition or civil society, Russian malign influence is able to spread with little resistance. The Hungarian public does not seem to share Orba´n’s affinity for Russia or his antagonism toward western institutions. According to a survey by the think tank GLOBSEC, 79 percent of Hungarians want to stay in the EU and 61 percent think the union is a good thing.
552
A resounding 81 percent of Hungarians believe that NATO is important for their safety and 71 percent believe that liberal democracy is the best
political system for Hungary, as opposed to an autocracy.
553
However, 45 percent of Hungarians hold a favorable view of Orban, a number nearly matched by Vladimir Putin, who was seen sympathetically by 44 percent of Hungar- ians.
554
The international community, working through existing watchdog efforts like the EU East StratCom Task Force, should aggressively uncover and publicize the scope and scale of Russian influence in Hungary.
555
Orba´n appears to have cast his lot with Moscow, but the Hungarian people chose a western path after the fall of communism and continue to embrace those values. With parliamentary elections due in the spring of 2018, the international community should proactively seek to build resilience within the Hungarian population so that they are made fully aware of the level of Russian interference in the affairs of the country.
Lessons Learned •
Opposing the Asymmetric Arsenal without a Government Part-ner is Difficult, But not Impossible As the United States and its allies look to build resilience to Russian interference in Europe, they will unfortunately not find a partner in the Hungarian government. Regardless, the international community should increase support for transparency and anti-corruption efforts in the country—the denial of US. visas for six Hun-
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(99) The countries in this chapter are defined as consolidated democracies a term drawn from the Freedom House Nations in Transit study, which ranks and measures the progress toward or backsliding from democracy of 29 countries from Central Europe to Central Asia. The ranking is determined by an assessment of a country’s national democratic governance, electoral process, civil society,
independent media, local democratic governance, judicial framework and independence, and corruption. Countries receiving the consolidated democracy classification are defined as ones that embody the best policies and practices of liberal democracy, but may face challenges often associated with corruption—that contribute to a slightly lower score Freedom House,
Nations in Transit 2017: The False Promise of Populism, at 22 (2017).
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