HUNGARY AND GERMANY

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 23123, 23 August 1938, Page 8

HUNGARY AND GERMANY

A visit by the Regent of Hungary to Berlin is being surrounded by organised enthusiasm similar to that which marked the tour of German territory by Signor Mussolini. Already, with Admiral Horthy's arrival in Austria, the close friendship between Germany and Hungary over a long term of years is being emphasised. The bonds may be all that is claimed for them, but a suspicious world will speculate whether something more than goodwill and affection lies beneath the ostentatious welcomes. As soon as Austria was overwhelmed by the German incursion, it was natural to consider what the result of this change in the map of Europe would be for Hungary. Some of the comments on that point suggest what may lie beneath this spectacular visit and its display of marvellous amity. What the new developments have meant for Czechoslovakia has been made plain to the world. If the present campaign of pressure and propaganda were transformed into action, Hungarian territory would have to be used as an avenue of approach; or, as one commentator has put it, "Hungary may turn into a new Belgium." With that possibility plain to view, and not likely to be missed by the Czechs, it is not unreasonable to infer that the parade and pageantry of Admiral Horthy's visit have been planned partly with an eye to their moral effect on Czechoslovakia. Again, accepting the theory of a German drive to the south-east, with the Ukraine at the end of it, Hungary spans the pathway, and the building up of a close understanding must be a necessary part of Germany's tactics. These are the chief, but there are other reasons to suspect more than a mere display of friendship in the visit and the welcome.