Budapest expels 2 after Ukraine says it uncovered Hungarian spy network

Ukraine’s SBU security agency said on Friday it had uncovered a spy network run by the Hungarian state to obtain intelligence about its defences, with Hungary responding to what it called “propaganda” by expelling two people at the Ukrainian embassy in Budapest.

The SBU said in a statement it had detained two suspected agents who, it said, were being run by Hungarian military intelligence.

It was the first time in Ukraine’s history that a Hungarian spy network had been found to be working against Kyiv’s interests, it said.

Hungary is part of the European Union and Nato, two blocs with which Kyiv is closely allied in Russia’s war in Ukraine, but relations between Kyiv and Budapest have often been fraught.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has been sceptical about Western military aid for Ukraine. He has also maintained relations with Vladimir Putin, putting him at odds with most other EU leaders, who have sought to isolate the Russian president since Moscow’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

The SBU said the two suspects were former members of Ukraine’s military, were in custody and had been given notice they were under suspicion of committing state treason.

  

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