Speech by Dr. Tamás Sulyok, President of Hungary, at the commissioning ceremony on 20 August

My fellow countrymen!
Celebrating Hungarians from the Carpathian Basin and around the world!

It is with joy and respect that I welcome the service members who have just taken their oath, as well as their families. With joy, because young people ready and well-prepared to serve and defend their homeland once again fill the nation's main square. With respect, because the oath they have taken-and which I hope they will keep throughout their lives-demands of them the noblest service and sacrifice.

The peace of the homeland and the security of the Hungarian state rest upon the loyalty of the members of its armed forces.
The solemn form of the commissioning ceremony is for the officer to declare before the nation and the world that they undertake to serve their country and to make all the sacrifices that this entails. In doing so, they follow in the footsteps of those Hungarians who, with or without an oath, have also undertaken courageous deeds and hard work, standing up for their country and their compatriots every day and in all circumstances.

Our home, the people who are important to us, our culture and values - which we love and consider worth preserving - are all maintained and sustained by the freely chosen loyalty, service and sacrifice of Hungarians.

Honourable celebrating audience!
Ladies and gentlemen!

20 August stands out among our national holidays. It is the celebration of Hungarian sovereignty. What we are celebrating today is the origin of a thousand years of Hungarian life.

With his decisions, which continue to have an impact to this day, King Saint Stephen determined the future of Hungary, definitively charting the course of the Hungarian people. In doing so, he ensured the survival of the Hungarian nation.

My esteemed compatriots!

Saint Stephen not only secured our place among the peoples of Europe at that time, but also irrevocably linked the Hungarian people to Europe. He made the Hungarians European, together with their culture. And in turn, it has enriched and given flavour to Europe with the Hungarian people and their unique character.
This is the pillar of European character in our identity.
However, Saint Stephen did not assimilate his people into Western values and interests, but added them to them. He did not measure the sovereignty of his state against anything else, but on its own merits. He became a European ruler, but as a Hungarian king.
This is the pillar of Hungarian sovereignty.

Saint Stephen connected Hungary to Christian Europe. To the Christian faith and Christian value system, which, in addition to offering a distinct moral quality of life and a system of relationships based on seeing one's fellow human beings as equals, also offered the countries and peoples of the continent a perspective beyond the transitory material world.
Saint Stephen put it this way: "If you hold up the shield of faith, you will also wear the helmet of salvation."

This faith produced heroes and saints from among the Hungarian people. It lifted us up and taught us healthy humility. What is more, it became the inspiration for our way of thinking and our creative power. This is how Hungarian culture became Christian culture - in its inspiration, its tools and its modes of expression. This is what the Christian pillar of the homeland means.

Our first king not only founded the Hungarian state, but also strengthened and consolidated it during his lifetime, making it stable and durable. He recognised that everything that is lasting is based on legality.

St. Stephen knew well that the hallmark of an independent state is independent lawmaking. He also knew that all power can only be interpreted within the framework of the law. Therefore, he enacted laws by exclusive right, which, although they fit into the Western tradition of lawmaking, were created specifically for Hungarian conditions.
He enforced his laws throughout the country and applied them equally to everyone.

Saint Stephen gave his son, Prince Imre, one of the most important pieces of advice for Christian and law-abiding governance: "Be gentle, so you never fight against the truth".

This marked the beginning of the Hungarian people's respect for the law. From that point on, the concepts of law and the Hungarian homeland became inseparable. Thanks to this, eight hundred years after the death of our first king, Sándor Petőfi was able to say that "only where there is law can there be a homeland."
This is the pillar of law.

Honourable defenders of the homeland!

Hungary is a sovereign European constitutional state imbued with Christian values, a home to generous, free people who share a common destiny. Our country is also home to those Hungarians who live far away, as our shared destiny unites all Hungarians.
When you fulfil your duties and carry out your tasks, please keep all this in mind. Interpret your loyalty in this context. After all, the oath you have now taken before the nation fits into a tradition stretching back more than a thousand years.

My fellow compatriots!
Celebrating Hungarians!

King Saint Stephen bequeathed to us a homeland built on stable foundations. This heritage has sustained us for more than a thousand years. We still live from this heritage today. For centuries, every Hungarian has contributed to it - or at least those who have been willing to do so. And from time to time, there are many who undertake to continue building Hungary with their loyalty, their work and their steadfastness. The ancient state which, if we do our job well, our grandchildren's grandchildren will also call home.

Thank you for your kind attention! I offer my heartfelt congratulations to the military officers. I wish the country and the proud Hungarian communities around the world a blessed and joyful celebration!