Kyiv and Budapest have engaged in a war of words after President Volodoymyr Zelenskiy said several spy drones flew into Ukrainian territory from Hungary.
Zelenskiy said on Friday that several reconnaissance drones likely of Hungarian origin violated Ukraine’s airspace and accused Budapest of spying on its border regions.
“I instructed all available information to be verified and that urgent reports be made on each recorded incident,” Zelenskiy said on the Telegram messaging app after meeting Ukraine’s top military command. Furthermore, he stressed that Ukrainians are currently the best in Europe at countering drones and are ready to share their expertise with other partners who need reliable protection from drone threats.
Zelenskiy’s accusations prompted a mocking rebuke from Budapest, with Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto stating that “President Zelenskiy is losing his mind to his anti-Hungarian obsession.” “He’s now starting to see things that aren’t there,” Szijjarto wrote on X.
The relations between Hungary and Ukraine have been sour since Russia’s full-fledged invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Hungary’s pro-Moscow Prime Minister Viktor Orban has been sceptical about the European Union’s military aid to Ukraine has maintained close ties with Vladimir Putin.
Earlier on Friday, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha said that Kyiv had banned three high-ranking Hungarian military officials’ entry to the country.
It should be noted that after Russia’s invasion, numerous major Ukrainian industrial firms—particularly those based in the eastern and southern regions—moved their operations to western Ukraine and other more secure areas of the country.
