Hungary summons Ukrainian envoy over alleged election interference

Hungary’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs has summoned Ukraine’s ambassador to Budapest to formally protest what it described as President Volodymyr Zelenskyy’s “crude and shameless” interference in Hungary’s upcoming parliamentary elections.

The move was announced by Hungary’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Peter Szijjarto, who said the meeting with the Ukrainian diplomat was conducted by one of his deputies, Caliber.Az reports, citing foreign media.

According to Szijjarto, Zelenskyy and the Ukrainian government have engaged in what he termed an “open, shameless, and crude intervention” aimed at influencing the outcome of Hungary’s elections. He alleged that Kyiv is seeking to secure a victory for the opposition Tisza party.

Szijjarto said the Hungarian side made its position unequivocally clear during the meeting. “Hungary will not tolerate interference by anyone in its parliamentary elections. We will not tolerate interference from Ukraine, nor any attempts to influence the election results or to intervene in the electoral process in favor of the Tisza party,” he stated.

He added that the deputy foreign minister emphasized Hungary’s determination to defend its sovereignty and the Hungarian people’s exclusive right to decide the country’s future. The minister called on the Ukrainian authorities to cease what he described as interference in Hungary’s internal affairs.

Szijjarto further claimed that Kyiv’s alleged support for the Hungarian opposition is driven by the expectation that, if it were to come to power, it would approve Ukraine’s accession to the European Union, “allow Brussels to drag Hungary into the war,” and agree to the use of Hungarian taxpayers’ funds “to sustain the functioning of the Ukrainian state.” The Hungarian government, he stressed, is determined to prevent such outcomes. “Decisions on these matters must be made in Hungary, not in Brussels and not in Kyiv,” he said.

The summoning of the Ukrainian ambassador was carried out on the instruction of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. On January 26, Orbán accused senior figures in the Ukrainian leadership, including President Zelenskyy, of issuing “gross insults and threats” against Hungary and its government, describing these actions as part of coordinated efforts to interfere in Hungary’s electoral process.

Hungary’s parliamentary elections, which will determine the formation of a new government, are scheduled for April 12. Prime Minister Orbán’s ruling Fidesz–Hungarian Civic Alliance party, along with its junior coalition partners, the Christian Democrats, is contesting the vote against the opposition Tisza party. The party is led by former government official Péter Magyar and is supported by EU leadership and the European People’s Party, the largest political group in the European Parliament.

By Vafa Guliyeva