EU Limits Hungary's Access to Sensitive Discussions Over Russia Intelligence Leaks

The EU is restricting Hungary's access to confidential material after the Washington Post reported Foreign Minister Szijjártó regularly briefed Russian counterpart Lavrov on EU Council discussions during meeting breaks. Five European diplomats expressed concern that 'every single EU meeting for years has basically had Moscow behind the table.' Separately, Russian intelligence operatives proposed staging a fake assassination attempt on PM Orbán to boost his poll numbers ahead of Hungary's April 12 election. The Commission formally called on Budapest to clarify the 'concerning' reports. Szijjártó denied all allegations as politically motivated.