The ICDT has launched the project titled “The Establishment and Exercise of Political and Civilian Control over the Hungarian Defence Forces since the Regime Change: From the Abolition of the Political Commissar System to Zrínyi 2026.”

As part of the project, we are analyzing the process, development, and current state of establishing political and civilian control over the armed forces. The project also highlights the assistance provided by the United States throughout this process.

As a first step, relevant documents have been reviewed and a summary is currently being prepared. In the second phase, ICDT staff conducted video interviews with American experts who made significant contributions to the success of the transition. Accordingly, interviews were conducted with the following individuals:

– April Foley, former U.S. Ambassador to Hungary
– Jim Townsend, former U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense
– Árpád Szurgyi, retired colonel, former U.S. Defense Attaché to Hungary
– Bill Reno, retired lieutenant general, former Director for Personnel (J1)
– Walt Slocombe, former U.S. Under Secretary of Defense
– Jon Martinson, retired colonel, former U.S. Defense Attaché to Hungary
– Tom Robertson, former Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Hungary