Where is Szijjártó? Hungarian minister to skip EU meeting after vanishing from public view
Szijjártó will miss next week's EU Foreign Affairs Council after the Orbán government's election loss. He faces accusations of sharing classified information with Russia and destroying sensitive documents.
Hungary’s outgoing foreign minister, Péter Szijjártó, will skip next week’s foreign affairs meeting in Luxembourg following the defeat of Viktor Orbán’s government, EU diplomats told Euronews. His office did not respond to a request for comment.
Yesterday, diplomats confirmed that outgoing Prime Minister Viktor Orbán will skip next week's informal European Summit in Cyprus.
Szijjártó was at the centre of controversy during the campaign over his close ties to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Leaked phone calls suggested he had offered to help remove Russian businessmen from the EU sanctions list and had contacted Russian counterparts during a key European summit in 2023, when Ukraine’s accession talks were under discussion.
Following Sunday’s elections resulting in a landslide with Tisza, Szijjártó has largely disappeared from public view, including social media where he used to be very active.
On Monday, Hungary’s prime minister-elect, Péter Magyar, accused Szijjártó of shredding sensitive documents related to Russia sanctions at the foreign ministry.
Magyar and his foreign affairs adviser, Anita Orbán, urged ministry staff to preserve all relevant files. The ministry rejected the claims on Wednesday, saying only paper copies of electronic files had been destroyed and no data was lost.
Szijjártó faces scrutiny over secret calls to Moscow
Péter Szijjártó’s close ties to Moscow became a major campaign issue after leaked transcripts and recorded phone calls emerged.
In March, The Washington Post reported that Szijjártó had called Russian officials during breaks in EU meetings in Brussels. He disputed the timing, saying the calls took place before and after the meetings, and denied breaching any rules calling it diplomatic engagement. Russia is the most sanctioned country under EU rules.
Later that month, a group of investigative journalists published a recording of a call between Szijjártó and his Russian counterpart, Sergey Lavrov, in which the Hungarian minister offered to help secure the removal of a Russian businessman's sister from EU sanctions lists — at Lavrov's request.
In April, ahead of the general election, a further leak alleged that Szijjártó had briefed Lavrov during a break at a key EU summit in Brussels in December 2023, at which leaders were discussing the launch of Ukraine's accession talks. According to the recording, Lavrov proposed that Szijjártó use the occasion to apply pressure on the EU.
Szijjártó dismissed the leaks as the work of foreign intelligence services, accusing them of targeting then Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's government ahead of the vote.
EU rushes to Budapest talks with Magyar team to unlock frozen funds amid Ukraine tensions
European Commission officials are due to meet the team of Hungary’s prime minister-designate, Péter Magyar, in Budapest on Friday, just five days after his election victory, to begin the process of unfreezing €17 billion in EU funds, with Ukraine-related disputes also on the agenda.
European Commission officials will meet Péter Magyar’s incoming team on Friday, as Brussels races against time to release EU funds that have been frozen during the current Orbán administration.
Magyar secured a sweeping victory in last Sunday's election, ending Viktor Orbán's 16-year rule. A key campaign pledge was to restore Hungary's ties with the EU and unblock billions in funding that had been withheld over rule-of-law and corruption concerns. Of the €27bn earmarked for Hungary, €17bn remains frozen.
"The clock is ticking for several topics, whether we're talking about the Ukraine loan, whether we're talking about Next Generation EU funds. It is in the interest of Hungary, it is in the interests of the EU, that we make progress as soon as possible," Commission Spokesperson Paula Pinho said.
Euronews understands that the EU delegation will include experts from the budget and the Recovery and Resilience Facility (RRF) — the EU’s post-Covid recovery fund. They are expected to provide technical assistance to Magyar’s team to help amend legislation in Hungary.
"There's a big menu from which to choose, and these are first talks. Not sure we'll be able to cover everything" Pinho added.
The recovery funds question is particularly urgent: Hungary stands to lose nearly €10bn if payments are not disbursed before the end of August.
On Monday, Magyar outlined a four-step plan to meet the conditions for accessing the funds, including joining the European Public Prosecutor's Office, restoring judicial independence, and safeguarding academic freedom.
Magyar has already spoken twice with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who pledged her support. The decision by Brussels to send a delegation just five days after the vote is widely viewed as a political signal in its own right.
"There is swift work to be done to restore, realign, and reform" Ursula von der Leyen said in a post on social media following her call with Magyar on Wednesday.
Ukraine-related disputes also on the agenda
Unblocking EU funds will not be the only item on Friday's agenda. Hungary has a raft of outstanding disputes with Brussels, particularly over Ukraine. The country is currently withholding the EU's €90bn aid package to Ukraine, after Orbán blocked a previously agreed decision at the March EU summit.
Hungary has also held up the opening of negotiating chapters in Ukraine's EU accession process and withheld payments through the Ukraine Peace Facility.
It remains unclear whether an agreement on EU funds and Ukraine-related issues will be bundled together. Brussels has stressed that it is not imposing any new conditions for releasing the funds and that its stance on the Ukraine loan remains unchanged.
For Magyar’s incoming government, moving quickly to endorse Ukraine-related commitments upon taking office carries political risks. During the campaign, Orbán repeatedly cast Tisza as a puppet of Ukraine and Brussels. On Wednesday, Magyar urged Orbán to lift his veto before leaving office.
Hungary blocked the Ukraine loan partly over a longstanding dispute concerning the Druzhba oil pipeline, a key artery of Hungary's energy supply that was damaged in a Russian strike in late January.
"In the next 30 days, the Orbán government is still operating as an executive government. So I think, if Druzhba restarts, Viktor Orbán will release his technical veto" Péter Magyar said in an interview with the Hungarian public broadcaster on Wednesday.
Ukraine had been reluctant to carry out repairs, citing technical difficulties and security concerns. However, days after the Hungarian election, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced plans to restore the pipeline by the end of April.
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