Purported Leaks Show Hungary's Ire

"WARSAW -- Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban named the U.S. as one of the top three adversaries for his Fidesz Party, according to a purportedly leaked Central Intelligence Agency assessment, underscoring the depth of a longtime rift between Washington and a North Atlantic Treaty Organization member that has increasingly defended its ties with Russia and China.

The document was part of a larger trove of purportedly leaked papers that provided details about the events in Ukraine, showed the extent of American intelligence about Russian military secrets, and shed a light on Washington's intercepted communications about U.S. allies.

The CIA intelligence update, dated March 2, said Mr. Orban's inclusion of the U.S. as a top adversary in a Feb. 22 political strategy meeting "constitutes an escalation of the level of anti-American rhetoric."

The note listed the U.S. Embassy as the source for the information, raising the possibility of U.S. monitoring of the ruling party meeting.

Mr. Orban didn't respond to a request to comment. The State Department said the Pentagon and U.S. intelligence agencies are assessing the authenticity of the documents.

The Wall Street Journal wasn't able to independently authenticate the leaked documents, including the file that includes the purported CIA finding, but they contain enough detail to give them credibility.

Defense officials have said they believe some of the documents could be authentic, though some appear to have been altered.

Since events in Ukraine in February 2022, Budapest has expressed broad skepticism of Western priorities, including shedding dependence on Russian energy and sending military aid to Ukraine. The rhetoric in the meeting, however, shows the extent of the long-running problems between Hungary and the U.S.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto, speaking in Moscow on Tuesday, said he had reached a new energy deal with Russia, giving Budapest latitude to import Russian gas volumes beyond those agreed in a long-term contract signed last year. Hungary has likewise criticized Western efforts to recruit it as part of a united front against China, which Budapest has aggressively courted for years.

Earlier this year, China's top diplomat, Wang Yi, visited Hungary, despite U.S. concern about growing Chinese investment in the country. Mr. Wang met with the five-term prime minister, who has governed Hungary for half of its post-Communist history.

Budapest was the first in the European Union to sign a so-called Belt-and-Road infrastructure development memorandum with Beijing, which financed a Chinese-built rail line connecting the country to Serbia.

Hungary hosts Huawei Technologies Co.'s largest supply center outside China, despite U.S. pressure to ban the tech company.

After expelling Budapest's Central European University, a U.S.-accredited college founded by liberal billionaire George Soros, Mr. Orban agreed to host Shanghai's Fudan University, whose Hungarian campus would become the first Chinese university in the European Union.

Hungary's stance on China has yielded benefits for Budapest. Last year, Chinese battery manufacturer Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. announced it was building a 7 billion euro battery factory, equivalent to $7.5 billion, in Debrecen in eastern Hungary." [1]

1.  World News: Purported Leaks Show Hungary's Ire
Grove, Thomas.  Wall Street Journal, Eastern edition; New York, N.Y. [New York, N.Y]. 12 Apr 2023: A.18.