358. Report From the Central Intelligence Agency to Multiple Agencies1
SUBJECT
- Hungarian Party Leader Interest in Raising Issue of Hungarian Minority in Romania During U.S. Visit
[1 line not declassified]
[less than 3 lines not declassified]
Text 1. Hungarian General Secretary Karoly (Grosz) [less than 2 lines not declassified] discuss the likely U.S. position on Romania’s treatment of its Hungarian minority prior to Grosz’s meeting with the U.S. President. [less than 2 lines not declassified] It is a political impossibility for Grosz to be indifferent to the issue of the Hungarians in Transylvania, considering Hungary’s strong historical ties to the region and Romanian President Nicolae (Ceausescu)’s current program of razing thousands of Hungarian villages in Romania. [less than 1 line not declassified] Grosz received no support when he raised the subject during his private meeting with Soviet leader Mikhail (Gorbachev). [less than 1 line not declassified] Gorbachev told Grosz that the issue involved Romanian sovereignty and that Ceausescu had the right to develop and implement Romanian policies.
2. [less than 1 line not declassified] Grosz would be interested in exploring [less than 1 line not declassified] whether it would be appropriate for Grosz to raise the minorities subject during his meeting with President Reagan. [less than 1 line not declassified] some Hungarian officials thought that perhaps the U.S. Government would be willing to consider some concession to the Romanians associated with the most-favored-nation (MFN) trading clause in return for better treatment of the Hungarian minority in Romania. ([less than 1 line not declassified] Comment: [less than 1 line not declassified] this approach was a non-starter. There was also some discussion [less than 1 line not declassified] on whether the United States would be willing to mention the Hungarian minority issue to the Soviets in a low key way during U.S.-Soviet discussions on regional issues.)
3. [less than 1 line not declassified] the primary reason for the visit was that Grosz favored the development of further ties and cooperation [Page 1144] with the United States. [less than 1 line not declassified] repeated references to the fact that this was the first head-of-state visit from Hungary to the U.S. ([less than 1 line not declassified] Comment: There is currently much discussion at senior government and party levels in Hungary as to the future of the country in light of the movement toward economic and financial integration within the Economic Community (EC). Many Hungarians fear that Budapest could progressively be shut out of the West European market, forcing the country deeper into the embrace of the Soviet Union. A number of officials, [less than 2 lines not declassified] argue that the solution is to try to align the Hungarian economy much closer to the West German economy. [less than 1 line not declassified] Budapest should follow the example set by Austria of political neutrality, combined with very close economic and financial ties with the EC, especially West Germany. [less than 1 line not declassified] Grosz is conceptually interested in further ties with the U.S. as a partial counterbalance to closer ties with Western Europe.)
- Source: Reagan Library, Rudolf Perina Files, Presidential Meeting with PM Groz Hungary 7/27/1988 (5). Secret; Specat; [handling restriction not declassified]. Sent to the White House Situation Room, the CIA Office of Current Affairs, the Department of State, the Department of the Treasury, and the Department of Commerce. This copy of the telegram was sent to Perina by means of an electronic message from the White House Situation Room, July 25.↩