It is not often that George Soros speaks publicly. But after being targeted for months by Hungarian right-wing authorities, Soros is shooting back.
In an interview with the Financial Times, the 87-years-old Jewish billionaire points to what he views as a disturbing trend in Europe and around the world. “It’s déjà vu all over again with one big change — the dominant ideology in the world now is nationalism,” he said. He argued that Russia was the player benefiting from this rise in global nationalism.
Soros and his organization, the Open Society Foundation, have been accused by the Hungarian government of meddling with the country’s policies and working to open Hungary’s borders to refugees. Some of the attacks carried a clear anti-Semitic undertone aimed at Soros, who was born in Hungary and left the country after the Holocaust.
In the interview, Soros pointed to Russian president Vladimir Putin as the force behind these and other attacks. “He doesn’t like me,” Soros said of Putin. Soros and his Foundation have been critical of Putin’s policies and in 2015 Russia kicked the foundation out of the country, citing “security risks.”
Contact Nathan Guttman at guttman@forward.com or on Twitter @nathanguttman