Treaty Of Trianon Turns 100: Unfinished Business In Central And Eastern Europe
The 4th of June, 2020, marked the 100th anniversary of the Treaty of Trianon, which dismembered the multi-ethnic Kingdom of Hungary (one of the two constituent states of Austria-Hungary), and granted two thirds of its’ territory to Czechoslovakia, Romania, and Yugoslavia. The anniversary was marked by nation-wide commemorations in Hungary. The issue still often raises tensions in the region between Hungary on one side, and Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, and Ukraine on the other, with the latter accusing Hungary of aspiring to retake former territories of the Kingdom of Hungary, and Hungary accusing the four of forced assimilation of numerous indigenous ethnic Hungarian minorities living on their soil. As in most cases of similar interethnic tensions, from Northern Ireland to Lebanon, the issue is also heavily loaded with historical grievances on both sides, from assimilation policies of the Kingdom of Hungary in 1867-1918 to the Benes decrees targeting the ethnic Hungarian minori...