Ukrainian security services have uncovered a Russian disinformation operation targeting the Hungarian minority in Zakarpattia, sparking a fierce exchange between the foreign ministers of both countries.

What Did the SBU Discover?

Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) announced the exposure of a large-scale psychological and information operation conducted by Russian intelligence. The perpetrators used phone number spoofing technology to call members of the Hungarian minority, posing as Ukrainian nationalist formations and even law enforcement officers. During the calls, they threatened victims with physical violence and demanded they leave Ukraine. Technical analysis confirmed that the calls were made directly from Russian territory.

Sybiha Takes Aim at Orbán

Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha immediately linked the uncovered operation to the ongoing election campaign in Hungary. In a sharp post on platform X, he stated that the operation demonstrates the scale of Russian interference in the Hungarian elections on behalf of Viktor Orbán — and did not rule out that it was conducted in direct coordination with his campaign team.

Budapest Strikes Back

Hungary’s response was immediate and furious. Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó rejected the accusations as lies and went on the offensive himself. „The last straw has been reached!” he wrote, accusing Kyiv of having a vested interest in the Hungarian opposition winning the election — a result that, in his view, would drag Hungary into the war, funnel Hungarian money to Ukraine, and pave the way for Ukraine’s EU accession. Szijjártó closed his post with an unambiguous demand: „Stop lying, stop interfering in our elections, and stop using the Hungarian community in Zakarpattia for your dirty political purposes!”

Broader Context

The incident fits into the escalating tensions between Kyiv and Budapest playing out against the backdrop of Hungary’s parliamentary elections. Russia has long been accused of actively supporting Orbán’s camp — through disinformation campaigns and the presence of Russian political operatives in Hungary. The affair demonstrates that Zakarpattia and its Hungarian minority remain a sensitive fault line that outside actors are eager to exploit in order to sow division among allies.