Hungarian secret services operated in the EU through diplomats in Brussels — investigation

The European Commission has officially confirmed for the first time the existence of a Hungarian spy network that operated in Brussels and attempted to obtain information from European Union officials.

This is reported by POLITICO, which has reviewed the European Commission document.

The document, dated April of this year, summarizes the results of an investigation conducted by European Commissioner for Anti-Fraud Piotr Serafin into allegations that Hungarian intelligence officers working at Hungary’s permanent representation to the EU were attempting to recruit officials from European institutions.

The investigation found that in 2013–2016, Hungary sent several intelligence officers to its mission to the EU.

“The activities of these intelligence officers in Brussels were initially discreet, but since 2015 have become increasingly open,” the document says.

The existence of this network eventually became known among Hungarian officials working in EU structures, which significantly reduced its effectiveness.

“To our knowledge, this activity ceased in 2016,” the findings state.

The document also states that the intelligence officers used their diplomatic status to carry out tasks that went beyond the normal work of the mission. They established contacts with European Commission officials of Hungarian origin and tried to obtain from them information of interest to the Hungarian government.

At the same time, the investigation did not establish the involvement of other officials in these activities.

“Based on the information gathered during the investigation and given the limited tools currently at the Commission’s disposal, it is not possible to assign individual responsibility or establish the involvement of individuals other than the intelligence officers themselves,” the document states.

The European Commission also stated that it had not discovered any serious security breaches, although it officially confirmed the existence of a spy network and its activities against European Union officials.

According to POLITICO, former Hungarian Permanent Representative to the EU and current European Commissioner Oliver Vargayi denied any knowledge of the activities of the secret services. He did not respond to a request for comment from reporters.

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