RFE/RL NEWSLINE 
Vol. 1, No. 161, 17 November 1997

HUNGARIANS OVERWHELMINGLY ENDORSE NATO MEMBERSHIP. With
almost all votes counted, results of the 16 November referendum
show that more than 85 percent of voters have endorsed accession to
NATO. Turnout was just below 50 percent. Prime Minister Gyula
Horn, speaking at a news conference in Budapest, thanked Hungarian
citizens for backing the government's position, saying the results are
"beyond all expectations." He added that the vote strengthens
Hungary's international position and sends an important message to
all NATO members. The results of the referendum are binding on the
government. MS

HUNGARIAN TELEPHONE SHARES TRADE IN NEW YORK. The Matav
telephone company has begun trading shares on both the Budapest
and New York stock exchanges, Hungarian media reported on 14
November. "This is the first time that the shares of an East-Central
European company have been floated simultaneously [in an East-
Central European capital] and in New York," Hungarian Prime
Minister Gyula Horn noted at the launching ceremony in Budapest.
Matav is 67 percent owned by Magyarcom, a consortium of U.S.
Ameritech and Deutsche Telecom, and 25 percent owned by
Hungary's State Privatization and Holding Company. The company's
shares will account for some 30 percent of all shares traded at the
Budapest stock exchange. MSZ

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