Just a few days before the national elections in Hungary, the country’s Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó found himself at the center of a new scandal involving leaked conversations with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov. The leak of these audio recordings has sparked widespread public reaction, as the politicians discussed sensitive issues regarding Ukraine and the European Union’s policies.
This is reported by Finway
Judgments on Documents Regarding Ukraine’s EU Membership
A consortium of investigative journalists published a series of audio recordings in which Péter Szijjártó converses with Sergey Lavrov about Ukraine’s process of joining the European Union, the EU’s sanctions policy against the Kremlin, and other strategic issues. In one of the fragments, the Hungarian minister agrees to send a document related to the role of minority languages in the negotiations on Ukraine’s Euro-integration at Lavrov’s request.
“I will send this to you. It’s not a problem”
At the same time, it is unclear from the recordings which specific document was referred to and whether it was publicly accessible. The authenticity of these audio recordings could not be independently verified.
Details of Other Released Conversations and Szijjártó’s Reaction
Additional materials released also feature other discussions between Szijjártó and Lavrov. In particular, they discuss organizational matters regarding the planned visit of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán to Moscow in 2024, blocking new EU sanctions against Russia in 2025, as well as details of negotiations between U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin in Alaska.
Journalists particularly note the trusting tone of the conversations. For instance, Lavrov remarked during the farewell: “All the best, my friend,” to which Szijjártó replied: “If you need anything, I am at your service.”
After the release of the audio recordings, Péter Szijjártó issued a comment, reiterating the illegality of the wiretapping of his phone conversations, which he attributes to foreign intelligence services and Hungarian journalists. He also stated the Hungarian government’s unwavering position on supporting peace and protecting the rights of the Hungarian minority in Transcarpathia. Furthermore, Szijjártó emphasized that Budapest is interested in access to cheap energy supplies from Russia and considers Brussels’ policy regarding the war to be dangerous for Europe.
According to another audio recording from August 30, 2024, Sergey Lavrov reached out to Szijjártó with a request on behalf of oligarch Alisher Usmanov to influence the exclusion of his sister Gulbahor Usmanova from the EU sanctions list.