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Hungary orders 10 Russian diplomats to leave the country over activities deemed unacceptable
Foreign Minister Anita Orbán said the move was aimed at protecting Hungary’s security and sovereignty, and did not sever diplomatic relations with Moscow.
On Tuesday, Foreign Minister Anita Orbán ordered 10 Russian embassy employees in Budapest to leave, citing activities incompatible with the Vienna Convention while maintaining that diplomatic relations with Russia remain intact.
The order follows the May 4 departure of Artur Sushkov, an alleged Russian intelligence officer, and Orbán's May 13 summoning of the Russian ambassador following a drone attack against Transcarpathia.
While Hungary previously expelled a Russian diplomat in 2018 following the poisoning of Sergei Skripal in Britain, officials described the current measure as unprecedented in scale to protect national sovereignty.
In Parliament, Péter Magyar asserted that a Tisza government would prioritize sovereignty, though the Foreign Ministry confirmed Hungary intends to maintain necessary diplomatic dialogue with the Kremlin.
Observers note that Orbán has adopted a more distant diplomatic approach toward Russia than her predecessor, Péter Szijjártó, though the government continues to frame the expulsions as a security measure rather than a diplomatic break.
Hungary has decided to expel ten Russian diplomats accused of carrying out activities incompatible with diplomatic status, and Moscow announces that the measure will not remain unresponsive. The Kremlin warns about consequences for relations between the two countries, but at the same time claims that it does not want to give up the dialogue with Budapest.