Hungary’s Prime Minister Viktor Orban has once again expressed sharp disapproval of Ukraine’s bid to join the European Union, citing what his government claims are acts of foreign interference and overwhelming domestic resistance. The criticism, voiced during and after the recent EU summit in Brussels, underscores deepening divisions within the bloc over how to approach Kyiv’s integration, with Budapest positioning itself as a holdout against what it sees as externally driven political pressure.
The Hungarian government said it was responding to what it described as credible intelligence regarding attempts by Ukrainian operatives to sway Hungarian public opinion through local media. The country’s national security committee has been briefed on the matter, which involves journalists allegedly working in cooperation with Ukrainian services to promote pro-Kyiv narratives.
Hungary’s media tensions intensified earlier this year when the ruling Fidesz party accused local journalists of serving Ukrainian interests. “The Ukrainian state is trying to discredit the Hungarian prime minister with the help of Hungarian and foreign journalists,” said Máté Kocsis, head of Fidesz’s parliamentary group. He claimed pro-opposition reporters were “willing to sell out their homeland for Ukrainian money.” Independent outlet Direkt36, named in a story by Magyar Nemzet, rejected the allegations as baseless, stating that “not a single word of the pro-government newspaper’s allegations is true,” hungarian media outlet Telex repoterd.
Hungarian officials alleged at a July 3 press briefing that Ukraine is actively trying to interfere in the country’s media environment in order to sway public opinion and pressure Budapest into supporting Ukraine’s accession to the EU and NATO.
Hungary’s claims come amid a widening chasm within the European bloc over how to handle Kyiv’s aspirations for deeper integration with Western institutions. While Brussels has pushed for fast-tracked accession, Budapest has remained a stubborn outlier, citing economic, strategic, and cultural misalignments.
At the heart of Orban’s latest stand is a national referendum held in Hungary, in which 95 percent of participants reportedly voted against Ukraine’s EU entry. Only 5 percent supported the move, according to the Prime Minister’s office. Although not legally binding, the vote was framed by Orban as a moral and political directive that “cannot be ignored in Brussels,” according to The Kyiv Independent.
“We worked hard to make our position clear to our European colleagues,” Orban said, referencing the summit in Brussels. “Hungary cannot, and will not, support Ukraine’s accession under current circumstances.”
These allegations are compounded by recent espionage revelations. Hungarian security services have identified two new Ukrainian spies, a government spokesman said, escalating the intelligence row between the two countries. One of the individuals “built ties with opposition figures and organized meetings with political and military figures ‘to sway Hungary’s stance on the Ukraine conflict,’” according to government spokesperson Zoltan Kovacs in a post on X. The other suspect was accused of seeking military and energy-related intelligence and is now “under criminal investigation for espionage.” Kovacs also noted that a travel ban had been imposed against one of the individuals in 2024, though specific locations and dates were not disclosed, according to Reuters.
According to reporting by Gazeta, Hungarian officials argue that the alleged media campaign by Ukraine is part of a broader pattern of Western pressure, including from the EU and NATO, to isolate Russia and reshape Central European alignment. Budapest, which has maintained economic and diplomatic ties with Moscow, views such efforts as attempts to override its sovereign decision-making.
“Ukraine is not only fighting on its borders, but now also fighting for influence in Europe’s media and politics,” said a senior Hungarian official familiar with the investigation, who spoke on condition of anonymity. “This is not the way to build trust or qualify for EU membership.”
Ukraine has not formally responded to the accusations. However, pro-Kyiv advocacy groups in Hungary have dismissed the claims as politically motivated, accusing the Orban government of using “foreign agent” rhetoric to justify its anti-Ukraine stance and cozy ties with Russia.
The EU has so far declined to comment on the allegations of interference but has reiterated its support for Ukraine’s long-term integration. The European Commission said it respects each member state’s right to conduct internal referenda but emphasized the need for unity and solidarity in the face of Russia’s ongoing military campaign in Ukraine.
Hungary’s position, however, may complicate EU efforts to present a unified front. Analysts warn that Orban’s refusal could embolden other skeptical member states, slow institutional reforms in Kyiv, and widen the credibility gap between Western rhetoric and internal EU cohesion.
“This isn’t just about Ukraine,” said Istvan Kovács, a political analyst at the Danube Institute in Budapest. “It’s about whether the EU can tolerate a member state charting an alternative geopolitical course, and whether national referenda will become a new tool to resist central policy.”
For Orban, whose government has clashed repeatedly with Brussels over issues ranging from migration to media freedom, the confrontation over Ukraine serves to reinforce his nationalist brand at home. It also cements Hungary’s position as an outlier in the West, one that seeks to balance EU membership with strategic independence, particularly in energy, trade, and defense policy.
Still, the timing of the Ukrainian interference claims raises questions. As the war drags on and EU fatigue sets in, Hungary’s narrative may find more sympathetic ears among those wary of further entanglements with Kyiv. A recent Eurobarometer survey found that support for Ukraine’s membership was beginning to wane in several southern and central European states.
Whether the intelligence allegations will be independently investigated remains unclear. But what is evident is that Ukraine’s path to Brussels has become more uncertain, and Hungary is now the face of that resistance.
