Tensions between Hungary and Ukraine have once again flared into open confrontation after a heated exchange of accusations between senior officials. The latest spat underscores not only the worsening bilateral relationship but also the broader cracks within the European Union over how far its members should go in backing Kiev in its protracted war against Russia.

The row began when Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky accused Hungary of violating his country’s sovereignty by sending drones into western Ukrainian airspace. According to Zelensky, the unmanned aerial vehicles “may have been conducting reconnaissance on the industrial potential of Ukraine’s border areas,” a remark that seemed to imply espionage.

Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto wasted no time in responding. Writing on X (formerly Twitter), he dismissed Zelensky’s claim as a fabrication, accusing the Ukrainian leader of descending into paranoia. “President Zelensky is losing his mind to his anti-Hungarian obsession,” Szijjarto wrote. “He is now starting to see things that aren’t there.”

The rebuke provoked an immediate reaction from Kiev. Ukrainian Deputy Foreign Minister Andrey Sibiga struck back, charging Hungary with duplicity and betrayal. “No amount of your attacks on our President will change what we – and everyone – see,” Sibiga declared, before accusing Budapest of “hypocrisy and moral degradation, open and covert work against Ukraine and the rest of Europe, serving as a Kremlin lackey.”

The sharp exchange is the latest episode in a relationship that has been deteriorating for years. Hungary has charted........

© Blitz