Jared Kushner, Erdogan and Hungary’s dubious program for persecuted Christians

On July 27 Deputy State Secretary Tristan Azbej tweeted his smiling photo with Jared Kushner. “Privilege to meet @jaredkushner, advisor (& son-in-law) to @realDonaldTrump and to receive acknowledgment for our program dedicated to aid the persecuted Christian communities. Mr. Kushner was supportive of the idea of joint US-Hungarian humanitarian action. #IRFMinisterial”

Joint US-Hungarian humanitarian action? The White House has not one word about this action. Nevertheless Hungarian-language media has widely reported the Kushner-Azbej meeting. (Read here-1 or here-2 or here-3.)

Hungary’s Mr. Tristan Azbej (left) claims that he discussed a “joint US-Hungarian humanitarian action” with Jared Kushner. The White House didn’t confirm.

Last year Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjén declared that Hungary would lead the fight to protect persecuted Christians: “It is a natural obligation of Hungary as a State that has a Christian identity as well as Christian ties in its history, culture and traditions.”

Mr. Semjén emphasized that what is happening in the European Union today is a “light” version of the persecution of Christians but not without endangering the “Christian European identity.” He claims that the EU refuses to deal this persecution despite the obvious facts, and rather talk about human rights or religious grievances instead. Hungary will follow a different path. The Orbán government has established a Deputy State Secretariat for helping persecuted Christians and the office is led by a young, ambitious US-trained geologist, Tristan Azbej.

When Mr Semjén was asked about Turkey where President Tayyip Erdogan is fanning anti-Christian sentiments, he said that a “certain degree” of Islamization can be observed there “but one cannot draw a parallel” between Erdogan and other Islamic leaders. He assured the press that Hungarian relations with Turkey and Mr. Erdogan are outstanding.

Mr. Orbán and Mr. Erdogan – mutual admiration.

This was an understatement. There is a blossoming lovefest between Turkey’s President Erdogan and Hungarian PM Viktor Orbán. Authoritarian Erdogan has arrested thousands of people, allegedly his “enemies,” among them Rev. Andrew Brunson, an American evangelical Christian pastor. Rev Brunson has been imprisoned since 2016 on trumped-up charges; the 50-year-old has lived in Turkey for over two decades and now Erdogan claims that the pastor and other Christians have conspired against him.

I expected that Hungary, the self-appointed leader of the fight against the persecution of Christians, would protest, and support Rev. Brunson. Not at all. Instead Mr. Azbej distributed his photo with Mr. Kushner. When I asked him about the US pastor, he wrote that Hungary is “monitoring the situation.”

Pastor Andrew Brunson (in the middle).

I find it strange and quite distasteful to use Kushner’s photo to promote Hungary’s program for persecuted Christians while refusing to condemn Mr. Erdogan’s persecution of the pastor. It seems that Hungary’s program is nothing more than a convenient media stunt, as President Trump would say – Fake News.

György Lázár

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