How did Hungarian police in the early 1950s see the FBI?

Abstract

By 1950, the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation had already had more than 40 years of history. After World War II, the world and Europe were marked by divisions and rivalries created by the Cold War situation. The sharp contrasts between the ideologies prevailing on both sides of the Iron Curtain undoubtedly influenced the activities and perceptions of the police, influenced professional opinions and views. At that time, persecution of political activists who were not suspected of crimes was typical on both sides. The State Police of the Hungarian People’s Republic, located on the western edge of the Soviet bloc, sharply criticized the police forces of capitalist states as far as possible, especially the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation. Already in the first years of the journal Rendőrségi Szemle was established in 1953, we can find several articles dealing with the activities of the FBI in whole or in part, rather, they criticise it, some of which refer back to past years.