Hungarian cardinal thanks U.S. for help during 1956 uprising

Published: 2006-06-28

BUDAPEST, Hungary (CNS) -- A Hungarian cardinal has expressed gratitude to the United States for helping his country in the 1956 uprising against Soviet domination. In a letter to U.S. President George W. Bush before his June 21-22 visit to Budapest, Cardinal Peter Erdo of Esztergom-Budapest said that "the innumerable gifts and parcels of food from the United States, which helped the people of our country both during and after the revolution," remain an "unforgettable memory." The cardinal said, "The kind gestures of those days carried a message of solidarity and freedom -- a message which we, today in freedom, can respond to with renewed feelings of gratitude and solidarity." This October will be the 50th anniversary of the uprising, in which thousands died in street battles with Soviet tanks and in subsequent executions. The reformist communist leader Imre Nagy denounced the Warsaw Pact and appealed for U.N. protection, spurring the violence.

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