7186602959

Andrea Glavanovics

identity, up till now. The special relationship with the United States in the field of security policy remained basie in the last decades and influenced European identity negatively.²¹

One important factor of national identity is foreign policy. The analysis of national identity has appeared both in British and Hungarian social science re-searches in the last decades referring to foreign policy.

Between the 'multi-national’ empires in the territory of the so called 'lands between’ Austria and the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy were counted as an important alliance partner for British foreign policy as far as maintaining the ba-lance of powers is concerned. On the other hand, neither from an economic nor from a military point of view was this region in the centre of attention for British foreign policy or public thinking. Till the middle of the 20th century British foreign policy was based upon its imperial consciousness which also determined national identity. Central-Eastern Europę was not in the first, not even in the second linę of attention concerning this policy and thinking.

This is such a relation in which Britain has always represented the richer and supporting partner and from which Hungary the weaker and morę underdeve-loped one, especially after the battle of Mohacs against the Turks in 1526 and in the 20th century, has always hoped to receive help and protection.²²

Every type of social structures has its dynamie, developing, prosperous, dec-lining and stagnating periods. The borders and political system and structure of States are changing both in space and time. It is not enough to analyse only the primarily important factors if we want to understand the essence and naturę of these Systems and structures. This is especially significant in the mirror of the challenges of the 21 st century as the member of the European Union. We have to draft and interpret our role in the world and in Europę we have to fili our well known or forgotten phrases concerning State, society, political thinking, sovereignty, identity and being a Hungarian. The study of the media as a tool or factor is essential to analyse these questions sińce the information got from the mass media should be interpreted day by day, which basically influences public opinion about history, culture, morals, different political, social and economic processes and naturally politics too. It is also true from a cross border point view. That is why it makes sense for example to speak about what British public thinking or image is about Hungary and other Central-eastern european countries.

After the cold war period in the changing multi-polar world Europę faces new challenges. Huntington analyses this new situation in his famous book which generated a lot of debates and discussions and he says that cultural identity and

²¹    Ibidem, p. 225.

²²    Arday L., Az Egyesiilt Kiralysag es Magyarorszag, Mundus Kiadó, Budapest 2005, p. 10.

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