Hungarian American Coalition News, 1994 (3. évfolyam, 1. szám)
1994 / 1. szám
Milwaukee Conference on NATO Membership for the Visegrad Countries President Clinton invited the leaders of Central Europe’s American ethnic organizations to meet with him in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on January 5-6,1994. The twenty invited representatives from Polish-American, Hungarian-American, Czech-American, and Slovak-American groups stressed the importance of NATO membership for the Visegrad Countries. Hungarian-American organizations were represented by Rev. Imre Bertalan and Edith Lauer (Hungarian American Coalition), László Papp (American Association of the Hungarian World Federation), Andrew Ludanyi (Hungarian Communion of Friends), and Peter Ujvagi (City Councilman for Toledo, Ohio). President Clinton’s speech, delivered by Vice President Gore, emphasized that the United States’ initiative, called Partnership for Peace would be the first step toward the eastern expansion of NATO, eventually leading to membership for the Visegrad Countries. Following the speech, at a private roundtable conference the above mentioned attendees thanked Vice President Gore for United States’ efforts to work for NATO membership for the Visegrad. On behalf of Hungarians both in Hungary and abroad, Edith Lauer thanked Vice President Gore for attending Prime Minister József Antall’s funeral. She reminded those present that József Antall must be remembered for his historic initiative in bringing together the Visegrad Countries. László Hamos conveyed the concerns of the Hungarian-American community regarding the threatened status of ethnic Hungarians in Vojvodina. Additionally, he urged the United States administration to promote international legal protection for ethnic minorities and to include this in the Partnership for Peace program. Vice President Gore responded positively by stating that one aim of Partnership for Peace is to resolve ethnic conflicts. Peter Ujvagi summarized the proposals which were discussed during the hour-long conference, emphasizing that the Partnership for Peace should determine both the criteria and timetable for the admission of new NATO members. He also recalled the deep disappointment and tragic consequences which resulted from the broken promises of Western support during the 1956 Hungarian Revolution. He asked Vice President Gore that the U.S. not make any promises to the Visegrad Countries that it cannot keep. A three hour long preliminary briefing, held on the previous evening provided an excellent opportunity for the 20 ethnic leaders to engage in an intensive discussion with the President’s foreign policy advisors: Sandy Berger, Deputy Assistant to the President for National Security; Daniel Fried, Director for East Central Europe, National Security Council; as well as the moderator of the meeting, Ms. Alexis Herman, Assistant to the President and Director of Public Liaison, whose office organized the conference. A unanimous stance was taken by the 20 ethnic leaders regarding the following three issues: • U.S. interests are well served by assuring stability in Europe through a revitalized NATO Alliance with rapid membership for the Visegrad Countries; • The Administration’s proposed Partnership for Peace will be effective only if it is a first step in a well-defined strategy, which includes criteria and a timetable for NATO membership; • U.S. foreign policy and NATO must deal with the security of East Central Europe as a separate issue from the progress of democratic reforms in Russia. In this issue: Historic meetings with President Clinton, Vice President Gore and other high ranking members of the Administration...............................................pages 1-2 In Memóriám - Dr. József Antall..................................................................page 3 Coalition Project Updates.......................................................................pages 4-5 News from our Members.......................................................................pages 6-10 About the Coalition.................................................................................page 11 Chairman of the Board.....Rev. Imre Bertalan President................. .................Edith Lauer Vice Presidents........ .............Gabor Bodnar Bishop Andrew Harsanyi Rev. István Mustos Dr. Balazs Somogyi Bishop Dr. Francis Vitéz Secretary................. .....Dr. Andrew Ludanyi Treasurer ................ ............Zsolt Szekeres Legal Counsel.......... ...Géza Kadar, Jr., Esq. Budapest Liaison..... .......Dr. Stephen Benko Board of Directors Judy Balogh............Hungarian Club of Toledo Dr. Enikő Molnár Basa.....American Hungarian Educator’s Association Dr. Stephen Benko Rev. Imre Bertalan Ildikó Bodoni, Esq...........................Hungarian American Human Rights Council László Bojtos............Magyar Club of Cleveland Dr. Edward Chaszar............Hungarian Scouts Assoc. Abroad Paul Fekete László Hamos....................Hungarian Human Rights Foundation Bishop Andrew Harsanyi................Hungarian Reformed Church of America Géza Kadar, Jr., Esq. Frank Koszorús, Jr., Esq.... American Hungarian Federation of Metropolitan Washington, D.C. Rev. Paul Kovács.....................Bethlen Home Edith Lauer Dr. Andrew Ludanyi Rev. István Mustos.........American Hungarian Catholic Clergy Assoc. Dr. Karoly Nagy.........Hungarian Alumni Assoc. Bessenyei Assoc. Dr. Peter Pastor............Atlantic Research and Publications, Inc. George Pogan................F.A.C.H.E. Cleveland Hungarian Development Panel Dr. Paul Rupprecht.... Minnesota Hungarian Inc. Dr. Imre Schiff................American-Hungarian for Human Rights in Délvidék Dr. Balazs Somogyi.....Hungarian Communion of Friends Helen Szablya.............Comprehensive Health Education Foundation Zsolt Szekeres Bishop Dr. Francis Vitéz....Calvin Synod of the United Church of Christ Sándor Taraszovics.................Committee for Danubian Research Dr. Paul Teleki Peter Ujvagi Paul Varga...............Hungarian (Magyar) Club Chicago, IL Suzanne Virgulák............Hungarian Reformed Federation of America 2 • Hungarian American Coalition News • Spring 1994
