Treason or smear campaign? Why a "spy war" has broken out between Hungary and Ukraine
On the morning of May 9, Kiev makes a suspected Hungarian agent ring public, handcuffs click in Budapest at midday and diplomats are expelled in the evening: A "war of espionage" has been raging in Eastern Europe "for months".
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- The Ukrainian domestic intelligence service has arrested two people accused of spying for Hungary.
- Among other things, they were allegedly supposed to collect military information from Transcarpathia and find out what the population would think of Hungarian "peacekeepers" if they invaded.
- The region in western Ukraine used to be part of the Kingdom of Hungary.
- On the day of publication, an anti-terrorist unit in Budapest arrested a Ukrainian and deported him for alleged espionage.
- Furthermore, two Ukrainian diplomats were declared persona non grata on May 9. In return, Kiev expelled two members of the Hungarian embassy.
- Bilateral talks were put on hold for the time being.
For the first time in Ukraine's history, Kiev's domestic intelligence service has uncovered a network of spies from the West:
The Security Service (SBU) has arrested two suspected agents who allegedly agitated for the Hungarian military intelligence service.
According to the SBU, their mission was to gauge the mood of the local population in the Ukrainian oblast of Transcarpathia, parts of which once belonged to the Kingdom of Hungary:
How would the population and authorities react if peacekeeping troops from Hungary invaded the region?
According to the last official census from 2001, 150,000 Hungarians lived in the oblast: the alleged spies were supposed to find out more about the diaspora and recruit more agents, according to the accusation.
They were also supposed to gather information about the state of the armed forces in Transcarpathia in the west, but also from the front in the east.
Sleeper was allegedly activated last fall
The first suspected spy is a 40-year-old man from the Berehowe district directly on the border with Hungary. He is said to have been recruited in 2001 and acted as a sleeper agent until he was "activated" in September 2024 - by an officer of the Hungarian military intelligence service whose identity is known.
The 40-year-old is said to have spied on local locations and, in particular, air defense. He then took this data to Hungary:
In order to be able to leave the country, he is said to have pretended that he had to have his sick father treated abroad.
Later, the accused allegedly tried to recruit at least two people. The SBU filmed another meeting between the man and his liaison officer in March:
A special cell phone was handed over to the alleged spy, the recordings show.
Charge of treason under martial law
The new mission: to identify the official cars of representatives of the security and defense forces in the Transcarpathian region and obtain further information from the front.
However, this apparently did not happen, as the video of the arrest, which is said to have taken place in the spring, suggests.
According to the SBU, the second person arrested is a former soldier in the Ukrainian military who only left the service this year: she was also supposed to spy on military facilities in Transcarpathia with a focus on the air force.
The General Prosecutor's Office is now charging the duo with treason under martial law. If convicted, they face life imprisonment and confiscation of their assets.
It is no secret that this spectacular case will put the already strained relations between Hungary and Ukraine to the test.
"Espionage war" has been raging "for months"
The reaction followed promptly: the SBU made the case public on 9 May. Just one day later, the Hungarian anti-terror unit TEK posted a video on Facebook showing a raid in Budapest the day before:
According to the video, gunmen there arrest a Ukrainian who is deported that very night.
"The person in question had previously been working under diplomatic cover, but his official status has now been revoked," it reads. According to a Ukrainian journalist, the person deported on May 9 is Serhiy Aleksandrov, who used to work for the embassy but now runs two restaurants in Budapest.
"Telex" from Hungary adds that the domestic secret service has identified the Ukrainian as an illegal spy who does not enjoy diplomatic immunity. However, because the person concerned had not committed a crime, he had been "deported as part of immigration proceedings".
"Coordinated campaign to denigrate Hungary"
Independently of the raid in Budapest, Hungary's foreign minister announced on the same day that two Ukrainian diplomats would be expelled. According to Péter Szijjártó, they were part of a "smear campaign" against his country because it did not want to support Kiev in the war against Russia. On the same day, Kiev also declared two diplomats to be undesirables.
The "espionage war" is not new, but has been flaring up "for months", according to Telex. Drones were previously discovered in Hungary's skies, which Kiev is said to have sent.
A security expert is quoted as saying that "further incidents" should be expected because "there is a lot at stake for both sides".
Viktor Orban is the last to comment on the matter - and adds fuel to the fire: Kiev is conducting a "coordinated campaign to denigrate Hungary", the prime minister is quoted as saying.
Orban is certain that they are cooperating with the Hungarian opposition party TISZA: "There has never been anything like this in our memory."
Kiev is doing this because Hungary has doubts about Ukraine's EU membership and is seeking an opinion poll on the matter: "Neither Brussels nor Kiev can decide for the Hungarian people," Orban asserts.
Planned bilateral talks on minority rights have now been suspended: The crisis between Hungary and Ukraine threatens to escalate once again.
