On Tuesday, America imposed major restrictions on visa-free travel for people from Hungary, Politico reported on the 24th. So far, under the US visa-free program, countries participating in the program can travel to America for up to 90 days. For tourist or business purposes without a visa, using the so-called Electronic Travel Authorization (ESTA) system. However, from Tuesday, the validity of the ESTA for Hungarian passport holders will be reduced from two years to one year, and will be valid for one-time use only. Of the 40 countries included in the US program, only Hungary is affected by this step, due to security concerns.
David PressmanThe US ambassador in Budapest told the newspaper before the announcement that between 2011 and 2020, the Hungarian government issued hundreds of thousands of passports as part of a simplified naturalization program without strict identity verification mechanisms. According to Pressman, the Hungarian government has been informed of all this for years, but it has not taken any steps in this regard and does not address security concerns. This is what prompted the United States to respond. “the United States Government Significant efforts have been made over many years to avoid this adjustment and to deal with long-term security risks arising from simplified naturalization procedures. Despite this, the Hungarian government decided not to address the concerns raised and did nothing to fulfill the requirements of the Visa Waiver Program in all respects.”
Ironically, the Hungarian nation loyal to the government a few weeks ago mentioned under this heading From this year's ranking of passports of countries in the world: “The Hungarian passport is stronger than the American one.” The list takes into account global travel opportunities in terms of the number of countries to which citizens can travel without a visa. The number of countries that can be visited without a visa with a Hungarian passport is not limited to this restriction, but its value has decreased significantly.
A few hours late on behalf of the Hungarian government, the Ministry of the Interior reaction. He also mentioned that the United States of America asked Hungary for data on Hungarians abroad who hold dual citizenship. However, Hungary does not disclose this to anyone, because the safety of Hungarians abroad is at stake, the ministry wrote, and according to it, “that is why President Joe Biden’s government is now retaliating against Hungarians.”
He is one of the spokespersons for the US Embassy in Budapest to 24.hu CertainThis step came due to the misuse of nationalities obtained through simplified naturalization.
Simple naturalization was introduced by the Hungarian government in 2010 to make it easier for Hungarians living across the border and of Hungarian descent to obtain Hungarian citizenship. Between 2010 and 2020 Nearly a million peopleWith few exceptions, cross-border Hungarians acquired Hungarian citizenship in this way, and the vast majority of them were from neighboring countries – mostly Romania, but also many from Serbia and Ukraine.
The US government's problem with this was that citizens of many countries that were not subject to visa exemption could therefore enter the United States without a visa, and the Hungarian government, according to them, had not implemented the necessary security measures. Checks for those who have been granted new citizenship.
The Washington Post, citing the Department of Homeland Security he is writingBy 2018, 700 non-Hungarian citizens had acquired Hungarian citizenship through simple naturalization. According to their point of view, 700 people obtained US citizenship without a visa through “fraud.” According to data from the Department of Homeland Security, at least 65 of them entered American territory, and in 2018, thirty of them do not yet know their exact whereabouts within the states.
Issue 24 adds to all this that a Washington Post article on the subject could bring us closer to a solution, highlighting that the United States has repeatedly asked Hungary to sever its very close relationship with Russia and ratify Sweden's accession to NATO. The restrictions on visa-free entry were announced a day after ruling party deputies failed to attend a special session of parliament called by the opposition to vote in favor of Sweden's accession.
(Cover photo: David Pressman, the new US Ambassador to Budapest, at the press conference held after his arrival at Ferenc Liszt Airport on September 2, 2022. MTI/Szilárd Koszticsák)
