Significant for Putin. Russia may intervene to back Orbán in Hungary’s elections - Media
Photo: Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and Russian President Vladimir Putin (Getty Images)
Russia may interfere in the upcoming parliamentary elections in Hungary to ensure that pro-Russian Viktor Orbán remains the country’s prime minister, The Times reports.
As the outlet recalls, Orbán previously claimed that if his party was defeated in the upcoming elections, Brussels would allegedly "press-gang Hungarians into fighting for Ukraine."
Meanwhile, his main rival in the elections, Péter Magyar, promised that if he won, "Hungary’s isolation from the West would be ended."
Russian intelligence is already aiding Orbán’s election campaign — last year, the SVR of Russia accused Brussels of attempting to install Péter Magyar as Hungary’s new prime minister in a "regime change" effort. The current prime minister is also supported in the elections by Russian President Vladimir Putin.
"I think the chances of more serious and more sinister Russian involvement in the Hungarian elections will definitely rise," analyst and head of the Political Capital think tank in Budapest, Péter Krekó, told journalists.
In his view, Hungary is important for Russian foreign policy, and Orbán is "even more important to Putin than he is to US President Donald Trump."
At the same time, an unnamed former Hungarian diplomat told The Times that Orbán’s current closeness to Moscow would have provoked major protests 10 or 15 years ago.
"But people have got used to this and it no longer provokes shock or anger," he believes.
Elections in Hungary
Parliamentary elections in Hungary are scheduled for April 12. The favorites are Péter Magyar’s Tisza party and Viktor Orbán’s Fidesz party.
According to the politician, the Ukrainian side, and personally President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, have allegedly become active participants in the elections, as they are interested in changing the country’s government.
