An email exchange has been leaked in which Berlin’s elite business school, ESMT, asks the German Foreign Ministry about Hungary’s Mathias Corvinus Collegium (MCC), which is Hungary’s largest private educational institution.
Germany’s ambassador to Budapest, Julia Gross, assisted with the inquiry by saying that “MCC is the cadre factory of the ruling party, Fidesz, a propaganda school,” according to Mandiner by way of Correctiv, the portal that published the letter and who calls Viktor Orbán a “much-criticized right-wing populist.”
A report by Spiegel claims Correctiv is financed by George Soros’ Open Society Foundations, including Є100,000 to expose what left-liberals believe is “spreading fake new on Facebook.”
Ambassador Gross further wrote that “MCC succeeds in attracting German speakers from conservative to very conservative, and carries out active and effective propaganda.”
MCC is also known for providing scholarships, publishing books and scientific articles, and organizing conferences both in Hungary and abroad. Due to accusations that it is close to Viktor Orbán’s government, it has become the target of political rivals both in Hungary and in the broader EU.
The German Ministry of Foreign Affairs itself reportedly stated that it hopes that studies in Germany will have a significant impact on Hungarian students and will bring them out of the “Fidesz bubble.”
However, ESMT, which is supported by companies such as BMW, Lufthansa and Deutsche Bank, defended its partnership with MCC, thanks to which Hungarian students can study free of charge at one of the best universities in Europe with a scholarship.
Germany’s liberal camp has tried to stop ESMT from cooperating with MCC before. Last June, one piece in Tagesspiegel demanded the immediate termination of their partnership, with Social Democrat Michael Roth voicing his support, claiming the MCC “is not suitable for free Berlin.”
Oddly, MCC hosted Ambassador Gross for a talk in the spring of 2023, and only a short time afterward, she was present for the signing of the agreement between MCC and ESMT, at which she backed the exchange project to “open students’ minds and teach them to show an interest in differing views.”
She also said: “I have got to know the MCC as a space where frank discussion is possible, where opinions sometimes clash, but opinions and positions are listened to.”
It is not apparent that MCC has since had Gross back to talk or if they plan on doing so in the future.
The leaked emails from ESMT indicate significant concern among German officials about MCC's role as a "cadre factory" for Fidesz, with Ambassador Julia Gross describing it as a "propaganda school." This scrutiny aligns with ongoing debates in Germany about the influence of conservative institutions and their implications for students’ perspectives. The broader context includes a push by Germany’s liberal factions to reconsider partnerships that might promote ideologies contrary to democratic values, evidenced by previous calls to sever ties with MCC.