Hungary Foreign Minister Discussed EU Sanctions With Russia in Leaked Audio

Hungary foreign minister discussed EU sanctions with Russia in leaked audio

Hungarian-Russian Relations and EU Sanctions Controversy

By Anita Komuves

BUDAPEST, March 31 (Reuters) - Hungary's foreign minister and his Russian counterpart discussed EU sanctions in an audio clip released by an investigative news outlet on Tuesday, days before an election that could determine whether Hungary sticks to its pro-Moscow course.

The recording published by Warsaw-based Vsquare.org purports to capture an August 2024 phone call between Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov.

Reuters was unable to independently verify the authenticity of the audio but in a Facebook video Szijjarto said wiretapping of his phone calls was a "huge scandal."

The leak comes a week after Prime Minister Viktor Orban ordered an investigation into what he described as the wiretapping of Szijjarto, as his government sought to contain the fallout from media reports about Hungary's ties to Russia.

The episode underscores unease among EU officials that Hungary is serving Russia's interests and working from within the bloc to undermine EU efforts to aid Ukraine. Orban says he aims to keep Hungary out of the war and protect its interests.

Orban, a veteran nationalist leader, faces his toughest election in 16 years on April 12. The centre‑right opposition Tisza party leads most independent polls by a wide margin.

Leaked Audio Details and Political Fallout

Content of the Recording

'WE WILL DO OUR BEST'

According to the recording published by Vsquare, Lavrov called Szijjarto to remind him of a promise to help remove the sister of a Russian businessman from the EU's sanctions list.

In the English-language audio, Szijjarto responds that Hungary and Slovakia would submit a proposal the following week to remove the woman from the list.

"We will do our best in order to get her off," Szijjarto says in the recording.

Additional Allegations and Verification

Vsquare also reported on a separate call, for which it did not provide audio, in which Szijjarto allegedly told Russia's Deputy Energy Minister Pavel Sorokin that he was working to repeal EU sanctions targeting Russia's shadow fleet of oil tankers.

A Vsquare representative told Reuters the outlet independently verified the audio recording using sources in more than one country and with the help of external audio experts.

Reuters was unable to independently verify the authenticity of the recording or the account of the call with Sorokin.

Hungarian Government Response

Szijjarto did not deny that the call with Lavrov took place and acknowledged that his conversations had been intercepted.

"It is a huge scandal ... that foreign secret services were continuously wiretapping my phone calls and that these foreign secret services have now made these phone calls public one and a half weeks before the Hungarian parliamentary election," he said in a video on his Facebook page.

The Russian government did not immediately comment.

The Slovak Foreign Ministry said it "will not comment or convey the details of its negotiating positions or those of other member states".

Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico told a news conference removing someone from an EU sanctions list requires the agreement of all 27 member states.

"So you cannot accuse anyone of being a Russian agent; then you must accuse all 27 member states of being Russian agents if they have reached a decision," he said.

Hungary's Relationship with Russia

Warm Ties with Moscow

WARM TIES WITH RUSSIA

Orban has fostered warm ties with President Vladimir Putin despite Russia's war in Ukraine, while maintaining Hungary’s heavy reliance on Russian oil and gas.

Szijjarto has travelled frequently to Moscow since Russia's full‑scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. On March 4, he met Putin to discuss oil supplies, among other issues.

Allegations of Information Sharing

Earlier this month, the Washington Post reported that Szijjarto had for years made regular phone calls during breaks at EU meetings to brief Lavrov with what the paper described as "live reports on what’s been discussed".

Szijjarto initially dismissed that report as "fake news" but later acknowledged consulting with non-EU countries before or after meetings of EU foreign ministers, including Russia, the U.S., Turkey and Israel, saying this was "perfectly natural".

Reporting and Editing Credits

(Reporting by Anita Komuves, additional reporting by Jason Hovet, Jan Lopatka and Alan Charlish; Editing by Ros Russell)