After promising Vladimir Putin in October 2025 to be his “mouse” and aid the Russian “lion,” Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán moved to tighten ties with the Kremlin. According to documents obtained by Politico, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó and Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko met secretly in Moscow late last year to sign a 12-point agreement. This plan aims to radically expand economic, energy, cultural, and sporting ties between the two nations.
Key points of the secret roadmap:
- Energy Integration: The agreement grants Russian state companies access to new Hungarian projects in electricity and hydrogen energy, while cementing cooperation in oil, gas, and nuclear fuel.
- Trade Pivot: Both sides committed to “reversing the negative dynamics in bilateral trade” caused by international sanctions, seeking new ways to bypass EU economic restrictions.
- Institutional Ties: Szijjártó and Murashko, co-chairs of the Russian-Hungarian Intergovernmental Commission, designed the plan to integrate strategic sectors that had previously been cooled by the conflict in Ukraine.
- Persistent Diplomacy: Despite the war, Szijjártó has met with Sergey Lavrov 20 times, but this specific 12-point plan remained hidden from EU partners until now.
Analytical Summary:
The Politico investigation confirms that Hungary has shifted from being a “difficult partner” to serving as a full-scale economic and political bridgehead for Russia within the European Union.
Undermining EU Unity: Signing a 12-point strategic plan amid active sanctions is a direct challenge to European institutional integrity. Orbán is setting a precedent where an EU member state officially integrates its strategic industries (hydrogen, nuclear) with Russian agencies, effectively neutralizing Brussels’ containment policy on Hungarian soil.
Russia as a Technological Partner: The choice of Mikhail Murashko as a signatory suggests that the cooperation extends beyond raw materials into the social sphere, medicine, and high-tech sectors. For the Kremlin, this is a way to maintain a “backdoor” into European markets and standards, using Hungarian entities as intermediaries.
Point of No Return: The depth and secrecy of this plan indicate that Orbán has finalized his choice for a strategic partnership with Moscow, regardless of the war’s outcome or EU pressure. For Brussels, this creates a critical dilemma: tolerate a “Trojan horse” within the union or take unprecedented steps to strip Hungary of its voting rights and access to European funds.