| As a form of nationalist phenomenon,irredentism has its own special ethnic conditions and historical background.First,the phenomenon is inextricably linked to cross-border groups.Secondly,the phenomenon reflects the history of the rise and fall of the initiating state behind it.Third,the phenomenon reflects the complex ethnic relations in the region.Hungarian irredentism is based on these three factors.During the Austro-Hungarian Empire,Hungary,as a powerful nation,oppressed and exploited other disadvantaged nations in the Danube valley,triggering strong ethnic hatred of Slavs in Central and Eastern Europe toward Hungarians.After World War I,however,the Austro-Hungarian Empire,as a defeated nation,disintegrated and Hungary was forced to sign the Treaty of Trianon under the coordination of the interests of the great powers,thus losing a large amount of territory and population.These Hungarians became a cross-border group,the Trans-Hungarians,and were reduced to a minority in the newly formed neighboring countries.Hungary saw the Treaty of Trianon as a national nightmare that would not go away in the course of its history,and was trapped in the myth of a powerful national past and a glorious kingdom.Amending the Treaty,protecting ethnic Hungarians across the border,and achieving national revival became the main line of the neighborhood policy of successive Hungarian governments after World War I.With the development of history and changes in the real environment,irredentism gradually evolved into a new connotation,namely "cultural and spiritual unity".This paper composes four periods of Hungarian irredentism toward its neighbors,namely the war period（1919-1945）,the socialist period（1946-1989）,the early period after Dramatic Changes in Eastern Europe（1989-2009）,and the period of the Orbán government’s re-election（2010-2021）,focusing on the contradictions between Hungary and its neighbors such as Romania,Slovakia,Ukraine,and Yugoslavia（post-dissolution Serbia）on the issue of cross-border Hungarian ethnicity,and exploring the phenomenon in the context of historical facts,reality,ethnic theory,and international relations theory,arguing that the cause of Hungarian irredentism is due to the legacy of history,the nationalist drive,political and economic factors,and of course its motives varied from period to period,for example,representative Hungarian leaders such as Horthy,Teleki,Kádár,Orbán,etc.all played a role in the extent of its manifestation that cannot be ignored.In this process,the neighboring countries,represented by Romania,Slovakia and Ukraine,responded strongly to it.With Hungary and its neighbors opting for integration into the European integration process,the negative impact of the crossborder ethnic Hungarian issue had also attracted extensive attention from the EU.With the intervention of the EU factor,the problem was alleviated to a certain extent by the improvement of the living conditions of cross-border Hungarians in the neighboring countries of Hungary,such as Romania and Slovakia.However,the complexity of the issue made the EU’s role in it limited,and the conflict between Hungary and its neighbors on this issue was not eradicated.It is noteworthy that there are mixed feelings about irredentism within Hungary and among cross-border Hungarians.Therefore,this paper argues that breaking the ethnic dilemma of the cross-border Hungarian issue requires multiple parties to continue to promote the matter of protecting the rights and interests of cross-border Hungarians,especially the EU has to play a greater role in it.The EU can not only mediate the conflicts between Hungary and its neighbors on this issue,but also restrain the behavior of relevant European countries to prevent the intensification of conflicts and maintain regional stability.In addition,this issue has important implications for the governance of ethnic groups and national security in China’s border areas,such as the need to continue to promote the cause of great unity and prosperity of all ethnic groups,and to prevent the threat of pannationalism and separatist forces to our national security,as well as to implement good neighbor diplomacy to create a stable surrounding environment for our development.In today’s era of globalization,the accelerated flow of elements that break down the traditional borders of nations makes the need for unity and prosperity of all nationalities within the country,not only for the direction of our national cause,but also for the real realization of good neighborly diplomacy between Hungary and its neighbors. |
