Please visit the United with Ukraine page for the most current information on Ukraine.

More information about Hungary is available on the Hungary Page and from other Department of State publications and other sources listed at the end of this fact sheet.

U.S.-HUNGARY RELATIONS

Hungary is a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), and the European Union (EU).  Hungary works with the United States to achieve shared international objectives, particularly in the security, law enforcement, economic, and energy areas.  The United States engages with Hungary on a wide range of issues including reducing the threats posed by terrorism and nuclear proliferation and strengthening shared transatlantic values such as promoting human rights and the rule of law.  Our two countries are bound together through myriad people-to-people contacts in business, the arts, academia, and other spheres.  Hungary is an ally in coalition operations, including NATO missions in Afghanistan, Iraq, and the Balkans.

The United States established diplomatic relations with Hungary in 1921 following the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy at the end of World War I.  Hungary severed relations with the United States in 1941 and allied with Nazi Germany during World War II; the United States and Hungary reestablished relations following the end of the War in 1945.  At the end of the War, Soviet forces entered the country and over the course of several years installed a communist regime that remained in place for over four decades, despite an uprising that the Soviet Union violently crushed in 1956.  After the collapse of communism in 1989, the United States provided assistance and expertise to support Hungary in its transition to a democratic political system and a free-market economy.  Hungary acceded to NATO in 1999 and the EU in 2004.  Hungary joined the Visa Waiver program in 2008.  The United States and Hungary signed a Defense Cooperation Agreement in 2019 to help modernize military cooperation between the two countries.  Today, the United States and Hungary cooperate on a broad range of transatlantic and other issues.

U.S. Assistance to Hungary

After Hungary joined the EU in 2004, the United States phased out bilateral development assistance.  Today, the United States provides security assistance to Hungary through Foreign Military Financing (FMF), International Military Education & Training (IMET), and other capacity-building funds such as Peacekeeping Operations (PKO)-funded Global Defense Reform Program, which advises the Hungarian Defense Forces on joint and operational planning.  This security assistance contributes to regional stability, helps support Hungary in coalition operations, and promotes the continued development of a flexible, sustainable, and interoperable Hungarian military capable of meeting its NATO commitments.

Bilateral Economic Relations

The United States is among the leading foreign investors with U.S. investment supporting more than 100,000 jobs in Hungary.  Hungary’s strategic location in Europe, access to EU markets, highly skilled and educated workforce, and sound infrastructure have led U.S. companies to locate facilities there, both in manufacturing and services.  U.S. investment has had a direct, positive impact on the Hungarian economy.

Hungary’s Membership in International Organizations

Hungary and the United States are members of numerous international organizations, including the United Nations, NATO, Euro-Atlantic Partnership Council, OSCE, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, International Monetary Fund, World Bank, and World Trade Organization.  Hungary also is an observer to the Organization of American States.

Bilateral Representation

Principal embassy officials are listed in the Department’s Key Officers List.

Hungary maintains an embassy  in the United States at 3910 Shoemaker St., NW, Washington, DC 20008 (tel. 202-362-6730).

More information about Hungary is available from the Department of State and other sources, some of which are listed here:

CIA World Factbook Hungary Page  
U.S. Embassy
History of U.S. Relations With Hungary
U.S. Census Bureau Foreign Trade Statistics
Export.gov International Offices Page
Library of Congress Country Studies
Travel Information

U.S. Department of State

The Lessons of 1989: Freedom and Our Future