I’ve just returned from another inspiring visit to Budapest, where I had the honor of speaking at the Central European Summit hosted by the Center for Fundamental Rights and Oeconomus.
In addition to speaking at the Summit, I met with both business leaders and senior government officials. What I encountered was a far cry from the narrative many in the West continue to push about Hungary. Instead of division or dysfunction, I found determination and grit — a nation focused on cooperation, stability, and peace.
Hungary is not looking to pick fights. It’s looking to form mutually beneficial partnerships. If only all of our NATO allies thought the same way as Hungary!
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Every meeting — whether it was with investors from Hungary’s growing technology sector, leaders in the energy industry, or top government officials — was guided by a single, unifying theme: the urgent need to end the war in Ukraine and restore peace and security to Central Europe.
There was no appetite for more posturing, more escalation, or more foreign finger-pointing. The Hungarian people, and their leaders, are ready to chart a path forward grounded in dialogue, pragmatism, and mutual respect.
This vision stands in stark contrast to the last two years under U.S. Ambassador David Pressman, whose approach to diplomacy in Hungary was anything but diplomatic. Rather than advancing U.S. interests through goodwill and common goals, Ambassador Pressman too often chose confrontation over cooperation, activism over alliance-building, and ideology over diplomacy. The result? A chilling of U.S.-Hungarian relations at a time when partnership should have been paramount.
Hungary is America’s NATO ally. It’s a country that has stood with the West on numerous key issues. And yet, for the better part of two years, Washington’s top representative in Budapest spent his time publicly scolding and privately provoking Hungarian officials over everything from domestic legislation to sovereign foreign policy choices. This was not statesmanship. It was cultural imperialism dressed up as diplomacy.
The contrast between then and now could not be more striking.
During my visit, Hungarian leaders expressed a deep and sincere desire to re-engage with the United States in a more constructive way — one rooted in economic cooperation, energy diversification, regional security, and shared Judeo-Christian values. They spoke not with resentment, but with resolve and forward looking. Not with grievance, but with gratitude for the many historic ties that bind our peoples and the new day that President Donald J. Trump has ushered in!
On the issue of Ukraine, in particular, Hungary has made clear that endless war is not a strategy. The country’s position is not driven by appeasement or indifference, but by a belief that peace must be pursued with the same urgency as victory. It’s a perspective informed by geography — Hungary shares a border with Ukraine — and by history, having lived through the devastation of Soviet domination.
The American people are increasingly asking the same questions Hungary has been asking since day one: How does this end? What is the diplomatic offramp? Who is making the case for peace? The only leaders I’ve seen making the case for peace are President Trump and Prime Minister Orban.
Trump’s America First foreign policy was built on avoiding endless wars and using leverage, not lectures, to bring adversaries to the negotiating table. That approach is sorely needed today, not only in Ukraine, but across the globe.
The Biden administration’s confrontational posture toward Hungary — and toward other nationalist governments that don’t bow to Brussels — has failed. It has alienated allies, eroded trust, and delayed the very peace the world so desperately needs. Fortunately, that chapter is closing.
I am happy to say that Hungary is open for business, open for dialogue, and open for a new relationship with Washington and the American business community — one that is grounded in mutual respect and shared strategic goals.
American companies should be investing in Hungary. American leaders should be strengthening ties with Budapest. And the next U.S. ambassador should come not with a lecture in hand, but with an outstretched hand, ready to work with our allies to solve real problems rather than score political points.
My visit made clear to me that the future of U.S.-Hungarian relations are bright and exciting. The Hungarian people are warm, welcoming, and deeply committed to peace and prosperity. They want partners, not patrons. And they deserve respect, not rebuke.
The opportunity is there. Let’s seize it — not squander it. The time is now to make US-HU Relations Great once again under President Trump’s leadership!
Bryan E. Leib is the Managing Director of Henry PR and a Senior Fellow with The Center for Fundamental Rights in Budapest, Hungary.
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