Description: Hungary’s Constitution Protection Office (Alkotmanyvedelmi Hivatal), one of the five intelligence agencies in Hungary which reports to the prime minister’s office, was accused of running a covert operation to infiltrate Orban’s political opponent, Peter Magyar and the center – right Tisza party. The case was uncovered by independent journalists from the Direkt36 investigative consortium and confirmed by Bence Szabo, former police captain in Hungary’s National Bureau of Investigation. Szabo appeared as the whistleblower of the case and is currently facing criminal charges along with other journalists who Orban accused of working for Ukraine in an attempt to undermine him and his Fidesz party. The scandal emerges after earlier this week another report claimed that Peter Szijjarto, Hungary’s foreign minister was regularly communicating with Russia’s Sergey Lavrov on EU foreign policy meetings and sanctions concerning Russia. Orban and Fidesz are facing an uphill battle against Tisza in the upcoming Apr 12 general elections which position Tisza way ahead of Fidesz. US Vice – President JD Vance is expected to meet Orban on Apr 07 despite the mounting allegations and scandals shaking up the Hungarian political scene.
Impact: The subsequent scandals surrounding Orban and Fidesz significantly undermine their political standing and further decrease their chances in the upcoming general elections. The ties between the current Hungarian government and Russia followed up by the espionage scandal would most likely further incapacitate Fidesz’ chances in the upcoming elections as Tisza is looking to topple Orban’s 16- year rule on Hungary. Political transformation in Hungary would most likely significantly reduce Russia’s influence in central Europe as Hungary has been a longstanding ally of Moscow despite its invasion of Ukraine. Orban’s attempts to deflect the political crisis within his own ranks towards Ukraine have been unsuccessful as Tisza and Peter Magyar are heavily favored by independent polls to win the election.