Karl von Habsburg: Memory of 1956 uprising in Hungary has faded
Although Ukraine learned from Hungary’s experience following the Soviet troops’ suppression of the 1956 uprising in Budapest, the memory of that event no longer exists in Hungary itself.
This was stated in a comment to Ukrinform by Karl von Habsburg, the grandson of the last Emperor of Austria-Hungary, Charles I, and honorary president of the Pan-European Movement of Austria.
“Ukraine has firsthand experience of what happened in Hungary in 1956. But, obviously, this memory is no longer present in Hungary,” he said.
Von Habsburg noted that the issue of Ukraine’s membership has become part of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s election campaign, and urged people to wait for the elections, since “fortunately, they will take place very soon.”
“I very much hope that the situation will calm down after the elections,” added the honorary president of the Pan-European Movement of Austria.
As reported by Ukrinform, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó stated on the sidelines of the EU Foreign Affairs Council meeting that Hungary will block the granting of a EUR 90 billion EU loan to Ukraine and the adoption of the EU’s 20th package of sanctions against Russia as long as Ukraine blocks the transit of Russian oil to Europe via the Ukrainian “Druzhba” oil pipeline.
Hungary also continues to block the opening of negotiations on Ukraine’s accession to the European Union.
As reported, on October 23, 1956, an uprising against the communist regime broke out in Hungary. Nearly 200,000 people took to the streets of Budapest. The next day, Soviet troops entered the Hungarian capital. Over the entire period, from October 23 to November 4, several thousand civilians were killed. Soviet losses amounted to over 700 dead and about 1,500 wounded.