Conclusion: Kin-State Nationalism and Diaspora Politics in Eastern Europe

Abstract

This book has shown that diaspora policies are driven primarily by the domestic political strategies of kin-state elites, challenging the notion that ethnic affiliation across borders is the primary driver of state action toward ethnic kin in other states. Kin-state action on behalf of ethnic diasporas, including incendiary remarks and diplomatic retaliation toward neighboring countries, cannot be seen simply as responses to the plight of ethnic kin. As the case of Hungary shows, an evaluation of the situation of coethnics in neighboring states is not an objective assessment made by kin-state politicians, but a subjective construction that maps quite closely to political affiliation. Actions taken by Hungary were often justified by the ties of ethnic kinship, but were driven primarily by domestic political strategy. Chapters 2 through 5 offered multiple episodes demonstrating how elites utilized the state’s relationship with the ethnic Hungarians across the border as a political resource to further their own strategic goals.