Kyiv accuses Hungarian agents of seeking military intelligence; Hungary denounces the claim as propaganda and expels two Ukrainian diplomats.
Ukraine’s SBU security agency said Friday it had dismantled a Hungarian spy network operating on its territory, marking the first time Kyiv has publicly accused a European Union and NATO member of espionage against its military defenses.
The SBU announced the arrest of two former Ukrainian soldiers, whom it claims were recruited by Hungarian military intelligence to gather sensitive data on Ukraine’s air defense systems and military operations in the country’s Transcarpathia region, home to a large ethnic Hungarian minority.
In a sharply worded statement, the SBU said the detained suspects were provided with cash and encrypted communication tools to relay classified information back to Budapest. Authorities have charged the men with state treason.
“This is the first time in Ukraine’s history that a Hungarian spy network has been uncovered working against our national interests,” the SBU said, underscoring the gravity of the accusation.
Hungary, a NATO ally that has often clashed with Kyiv over minority rights and military aid, swiftly rejected the espionage claims. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto dismissed Ukraine’s move as “propaganda” and announced the expulsion of two Ukrainian diplomats from the embassy in Budapest in a tit-for-tat response.
“We do not tolerate that Ukraine continuously launches such defamatory acts against Hungary and the Hungarian people,” Mr. Szijjarto said in a video posted on Facebook. He argued that Ukraine’s accusations were politically motivated, tied to Hungary’s ongoing refusal to provide military aid to Kyiv as it defends itself against Russia’s invasion, now entering its third year.
Relations between the two neighbors have long been fraught. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has maintained close ties with Russian President Vladimir V. Putin, setting himself apart from other European leaders who have sought to isolate Moscow since the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Orban’s government has also clashed with Kyiv over the rights of ethnic Hungarians in the Transcarpathia region, particularly on issues of language and education.
The diplomatic fallout adds a new layer of tension to an already delicate geopolitical landscape, as Ukraine continues to depend on Western aid in its fight against Russian forces — support that Hungary has repeatedly resisted.
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