Another batch of leaked phone calls between Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has been published by a consortium of European outlets, including VSquare, FRONTSTORY, Delfi Estonia, The Insider, and the Investigative Center of Ján Kuciak (ICJK).
The recent leaks cover conversations between the two diplomats spanning 2023 to 2025, and allege sustained coordination between Budapest and Moscow on issues related to the war in Ukraine and sanctions on Russia. The recordings—which were reportedly made by unnamed European intelligence services and provided to journalists—also give basis to already surfacing accusations that Szijjártó shares confidential EU documents and information with Lavrov. During a December 2023 call, Szijjártó agreed to provide a framework document related to Ukraine’s EU accession. The document, however, had already been made public at the time of the conversation.
The calls further suggest coordination ahead of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s July 2024 meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Szijjártó asked whether Putin would receive Orbán ‘anywhere in Russia’, noting that the Hungarian leader was ‘absolutely flexible’, while indicating that the meeting would carry additional weight due to Hungary’s rotating EU presidency.
The meeting was part of Orbán’s so-called peace mission, during which he visited Kyiv, Moscow, Beijing, Washington, DC, and Mar-a-Lago in order to speak with all parties involved in the war in Ukraine and attempt to find a path towards negotiations. The peace mission was met with outrage by EU leaders and officials, who criticized Hungary for acting as the ‘head’ of the EU without authorization.
In a 2025 call, according to the report, Szijjártó criticized the European Commission’s plans to phase out Russian energy as a ‘stupid idiot proposal’ and sought Moscow’s assistance in maintaining payment mechanisms for gas imports. The calls also touched upon minority rights in Ukraine, which remains one of the main reasons why Budapest is blocking Kyiv’s EU accession.
EU officials cited in the report reacted strongly to the revelations. One high-ranking official described it as ‘wild’ that Szijjártó appeared to be ‘begging for an invitation for Orbán to Moscow’, calling the behaviour ‘very embarrassing’ and suggesting that ‘the Hungarians [were] deceiving the European Union.’ Another EU official said it ‘makes me want to vomit’ to see coordination with ‘the aggressor’ on how to pressure Ukraine, while also describing Szijjártó’s conduct as ‘disloyal’ and ‘very embarrassing’.
‘Another EU official said it “makes me want to vomit” to see coordination with “the aggressor” on how to pressure Ukraine’
Szijjártó responded to the leaks on social media, pointing to what he described as an ‘unusually crude and overt interference by foreign intelligence services’ in Hungary’s upcoming elections. According to the foreign minister, the contents of the report are not ‘revelations’ but rather reaffirm Hungary’s already known positions on Ukraine, Russian energy, and EU sanctions.
He also accused one of the authors, Hungarian journalist Szabolcs Panyi, of collaborating with foreign intelligence to influence the outcome of the election. The Ministry of Justice recently filed a criminal complaint against Panyi on suspicion of espionage following another leaked audio recording in which he reportedly spoke about contacts with an unnamed foreign intelligence service.
The same consortium of outlets published earlier recordings of Szijjártó–Lavrov calls last week, in which the Hungarian foreign minister discussed removing sanctioned Russian individuals—including relatives of oligarch Alisher Usmanov—from the European Union’s sanctions list. According to the recordings, Szijjártó sought advice on how to justify Hungary’s objections, coordinating with the Slovak government.
Just a day before the publication of the latest leaks, Bloomberg published transcripts of an October 2025 phone call between Orbán and Putin, which took place when Budapest was being considered as a potential venue for a meeting between Putin and US President Donald Trump. According to Bloomberg, Orbán told Putin that he is at the Russian president’s service in ‘any matter where I can be of assistance’.
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