An intelligence agency never never acts on its own, but on orders from its government, Jozsef Horvath said in response to our paper's inquiry. The espionage scandal in Transcarpathia can be described as a targeted, politically ordered operation carried out by Ukrainian intelligence, the director of the Sovereignty Protection Research Institute stated.
(Source: Sovereignty Protection Office)
As reported yesterday, following the meeting of the Hungarian parliament's national security committee, Mate Kocsis, parliamentary group leader of Fidesz, revealed that Ukrainian intelligence recorded footage of the arrests of the alleged Hungarian spies a month ago. These recordings were later used to launch a coordinated smear campaign against Hungary. Their aim, he said, was to create the impression that Hungary is preparing for war against Ukraine. The leader of the Fidesz parliamentary group emphasized that the footage was one-month old, and the arrests were part of a political operation.
No Evidence
Jozsef Horvath stressed that the release of the footage was undoubtedly intentional, and it is also clear that the Ukrainian services no longer want to fight this battle on a professional level, but on a political stage — which in itself is a political decision. The expert noted it is telling that no official documents about the operation have been published.
„We also need to bear in mind that since they are operating on their home turf and they apprehended these two citizens, they can essentially produce any information or documents they need to support their narrative — even retroactively”
he pointed out.
Ongoing Struggle
He noted that while such operations may shock ordinary citizens, they are routine in the world of intelligence — they are just kept hidden from public view. "Against such offensive operations, Hungarian intelligence must continuously engage in defensive countermeasures," he added.
The director also addressed the relationship between the Ukrainian and Hungarian intelligence services. In his view, their ties have already moved past the point where professional dialogue alone could resolve the conflict. He explained that if there were a platform for cooperation or contact between the two countries’ agencies — or if a third party were mediating — there might be a chance to settle the issue behind the scenes, reaching an agreement. In such cases, each side typically holds cards that can be used to prevent public exposure of the scandal. "But that option is clearly off the table now, since making the scandal public was a political goal from the very beginning for the Ukrainian side," Jozsef Horvath concluded.
