Covert operations: Orban government planes allegedly carried money and valuables from Russia, according to revelations of a Hungarian journalist
Serious allegations are looming over Viktor Orban's government after an investigative journalist claimed that Hungarian official planes had been carrying suspicious shipments from Russia for years.
Viktor Orban PHOTO: Profimedia
According to him, such information would have started circulating since 2016-2017 within the national security services of several member states of the European Union and NATO.
Panyi says he has obtained confirmation from officials in at least six different countries, which would indicate that Hungarian aircraft returned from Russia loaded with valuable goods, eurointegration writes.
The journalist specified that these data would not come from the direct interception of Hungarian officials, but from the monitoring of discussions held by Russian officials, in which references were made to the preparation of such transports.
Panyi also believes that the espionage file opened on his name by the Hungarian Ministry of Justice on March 26 could be related to his investigations into these flights. He suggested that the authorities in Budapest may press other charges against him, which he considers fabricated.
The case was amplified in the public space after the pro-government publication Mandiner broadcast an audio recording of a conversation between the journalist and an anonymous woman.
In that discussion, Panyi claimed that he was aware that a foreign intelligence service had intercepted Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó's conversations.
Later, the media favorable to the ruling Fidesz party used this information to accuse the journalist of espionage, triggering a smear campaign against him.
On March 23, Panyi also published the transcript of a 2020 conversation between Szijjártó and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, in which the Hungarian official allegedly sought support for Robert Fico's party to win the Slovakian elections.
So far, the Hungarian authorities have not offered an official point of view on these allegations.
