Hungarian intelligence in Ukraine: why this spy case is different

The author of the Resurgam Telegram channel discussed the issue.

Military intelligence networks between even friendly countries aren't out of the ordinary. However, this particular case is quite interesting, and here’s why:

Just a day before Hungarian intelligence agents were detained in Ukraine, Péter Magyar released notes from the Defense Minister dated 2023, in which he called for “the militarization of the country and a departure from peaceful policies.” This sharply contradicts the Orbán government's public messaging about peace and its use of war fearmongering to sway voters.

The detained intelligence group testified that they were collecting information for a potential annexation of Ukraine's Zakarpattia region, should the conditions align.

The “militarization” clearly seems to be aimed at Ukraine, as Hungary is unlikely to provoke its NATO and EU partners.

Now, Ukraine, the Hungarian opposition, and officials in Brussels can connect Hungary’s covert militarization and its “Greater Hungary” rhetoric directly to Ukraine, with the arrest of military intelligence agents now confirming this.

Moreover, given Hungary’s policies are at odds with EU values, the Ukrainian Security Service's early uncovering of Hungarian agents, along with intelligence tactics such as wiretapping and geolocation tracking, points to the following outcomes:

• The Hungarian opposition can now accuse the government of lying and aligning with “Putin’s values” rather than European ones.

• Ukraine now holds the detained Hungarian military intelligence agents, making the case a political issue between the two countries. Typically, countries try to bury such cases diplomatically.

• Ukraine can push Brussels to recognize Hungary's actions as part of a more aggressive strategy aimed at annexing a neighboring country’s territory — something further underlined by the visits of EU Foreign Ministry delegations.

"As a result, we can expect a process based on the principle: 'If you get caught, you pay.' Hungary will likely want to quickly cover up the scandal, while Ukraine should focus on making the issue public, as Hungary may have several concessions to offer to move past the situation," the author concludes.

• For the first time in Ukraine’s history, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) uncovered a Hungarian military intelligence network that was spying against Ukraine.
• Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjártó says that Budapest has not yet received any official information from Kyiv about the uncovered Hungarian spy network and mentions "anti-Hungarian propaganda."