Kyiv: growing Russian influence on Hungary threatens all of Europe
Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Vasyl Bodnar expressed his concern regarding the growth of Russia's influence on Hungary.
"Politically, I can assume that Moscow's influence on Budapest is, unfortunately, growing and that this is a threat not only to Kyiv but also to Europe, to NATO unity and to the understanding of how Russia acts in a hybrid way," said Vasyl Bodnar in an interview with Radio Liberty.
According to Bodnar, Hungary is using its NATO membership to pressure Ukraine in the interests of a "third party".
"Hungarians living in Ukraine are part of Ukrainian society, [so] their security should be a key interest for Hungary. Therefore, Ukraine's presence in NATO would be more beneficial to Hungary than the opposite. Therefore, I suspect that Hungary is pushing not its [own] interest in NATO, but [in] the interest of a third party," said Bodnar, specifying that by "third party" he means Russia.
Bodnar earlier expressed hope that Ukraine would be able to resume constructive dialogue with Hungary after the latter country’s recently-held elections.
Hungary’s parliamentary elections took place on April 8. The Fides-CDPP political alliance, which is led by current Prime Minister Viktor Orban, was defeated by a large margin in the election results