Hungarian “Swissification”: Cracking Open the New Iron Wall Between the East and West

Diplomacy between the East and West has reached an all-time low. With ever increasing tension in the Indo-Pacific between China, its neighbors and the United States, and the continuing Russian invasion of Ukraine, a new “Great Iron Wall” has emerged dividing the East and West. With the threat of war looming over the horizon, Western powers need to formulate new strategies on how to diplomatically approach and prevent conflict from the East.

This paper argues that Hungary is undergoing a process of “Swissification”, and is starting to become what Switzerland was in the 20th century. Budapest, with its zeal for an international strategy centered around connectivity, is increasing in international significance and is beginning to operate as a gateway for the East into the West. But that gateway works both ways, and Hungary’s policies are beginning to afford Western powers new opportunities to engage the East in a way that it so far hasn’t been able to in the 21st century. 

There are still problems and issues that need to be addressed, but just as the United States successfully addressed the problems it had in its relationship with Switzerland in the 20th century, so too can its current issues with Hungary be mitigated. And just as Switzerland became instrumental in the West’s pursuit of preventing war with the Soviet Union and other more current hostile regimes around the world, Hungary is beginning to present opportunities that if used properly, can be exploited by the West as a tool to prevent war and preserve the liberal global order.