Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó announced that he maintains active talks with representatives of Russia, Serbia, Israel, the US and Turkey both before and after the meetings of the European Union on foreign affairs, informs “Politico“, reports News.bg.
During a pre-election event, he emphasized that communication with international partners is a constant practice. According to him, he does not communicate only with his Russian counterpart, but also with the foreign ministers of a number of other countries before and after the meetings of the EU Council.
Szijjártó justified his actions by the fact that decisions are made within the European Union that directly affect Hungary's relations and cooperation with countries outside the union. According to him, this is the essence of foreign policy - dialogue with international leaders, even when it is inconvenient.
Meanwhile, the “Washington Post“ published information that the government of Viktor Orbán maintained close ties with Moscow during the war in Ukraine. According to the publication, Szijjártó used breaks during meetings with European partners to convey information to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. As a result of such suspicions, the European Union has restricted Hungary's access to sensitive information.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk also spoke on the subject, stating that such allegations are not surprising and that suspicions have existed for a long time. He added that this is precisely why he is cautious in his statements during EU meetings. Tusk also expressed support for Hungarian opposition leader Peter Magyar ahead of the upcoming elections on April 12.
In response, Szijjártó rejected the accusations, calling them false and misleading. A similar position was taken by Hungarian Minister for European Affairs János Bóka, who called the information false and linked it to political tensions within the framework of the election campaign.