Szijjarto’s Leaked Calls With Lavrov Prove That He’s Europe’s Last Real Diplomat

Andrew Korybko 

The EU has no tolerance for real nationalists and the diplomats that represent them

Leaked calls between Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto and his Russian counterpart Sergey Lavrov recently circulated in which he’s shown to have discussed his country’s attempts to remove Russians from the EU’s sanctions list. He posted on X that they only “proved that I say the same publicly as I do on the phone”, namely that “Hungary will never agree to sanction individuals or companies essential for our energy security, for achieving peace, or those with no reason to be on a sanctions list.”

That’s true, and they also prove that he’s Europe’s last real diplomat in the sense that he engages with Russia despite Hungary voting against it at the UNGA, which shows that he understands the importance of dialogue for achieving peace and ensuring his country’s objective national interests. The longer that the conflict rages, the more tenuous Hungary’s energy security becomes due to its reliance on easily disrupted Ukrainian-transiting Russian supplies, ergo his and Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s peace efforts.

Nevertheless, these same efforts have been dishonestly misportrayed as “treason” per the Mainstream Media’s framing of Szijjarto’s leaked calls with Lavrov, the perception of which is aimed at manipulating voters into casting their ballot for the opposition ahead of the upcoming parliamentary elections. The EU wants to subordinate Hungary, the continent’s last remaining conservative-nationalist outpost, to liberal-globalism. Here are five background briefings about how they’re meddling in the upcoming elections:

* 19 September 2025: “Hungary Warned About Brussels’ Three Regime Change Plots In Central Europe”

* 13 February 2026: “Orban Is Right: Ukraine Has Truly Become Hungary’s Enemy”

* 12 March 2026: “The West’s Accusation Of Russian Meddling In Hungary Is Actually A Confession”

* 22 March 2026: “Istvan Kapitany Might Succeed In Hungary Where George Soros Failed”

* 27 March 2026: “What’s Poland’s Role In The ‘Battle For Hungary’?”

Discredited Russiagate conspiracy theories like the one that’s lent false credence by Szijjarto’s leaked calls with Lavrov are aimed at delegitimizing Orban’s potential re-election, which can then justify any of the five ways in which the EU is already preparing to handle Hungary in that event. Politico reported on them here, which boil down to: changing how the EU votes; introducing a multi-speed Europe; more financial pressure; suspending Hungary’s voting rights; and possibly even expelling it from the EU.

Just like Szijjarto is Europe’s last real diplomat, so too is Orban its last real nationalist who always puts his country’s interests first, which is why he authorized Szijjarto’s diplomacy with Lavrov. Circling back to that, there’s nothing scandalous about helping a partner’s unjustly sanctioned nationals nor in updating them about how ties could change due to their obligations to the bloc in which they’re a part. Szijjarto therefore did nothing wrong, but rather, he did everything right and that’s why he’s being targeted.

The EU has no tolerance for real nationalists and the diplomats that represent them, which contextualizes its campaigns against not only Orban and Szijjarto, but also Germany’s AfD, Poland’s conservative and populist-nationalist opposition parties, and Romanian nationalists too, et al. The difference between them and Hungary is that its nationalists are in power and actively advancing national interests, which is why the EU is actively working to remove them by hook or by crook. 

Andrew Korybko, Substack, April 1, 2026

Anteriores:
A Top Russian Expert Shared His Views On Relations With The US 
Istvan Kapitany Might Succeed In Hungary Where George Soros Failed 
The EU Poses A Much More Credible Threat To Russia Than The Inverse 
Why Do More Russians Perceive Poland To Be An Enemy Than They Do Any Other Country? 
The DROP Act Is An Unprecedented Weapon Of Financial Warfare Against Russia 
The Planned “NATO Bank” Is Expected To Finance Europe’s Impending Arms Race With Russia 
Three Scenarios For How The Iran War Might End The US Military Campaign Against Iran Is Part Of Trump’s Grand Strategy Against China