Szijjártó promised to pass Lavrov document on Ukraine’s EU accession: media release another conversation between ministers. AUDIO
Investigative journalists have released another audio recording of a conversation between Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. In it, Szijjártó, at Lavrov’s request, agrees to pass along a document on the role of minority languages in the negotiations on Ukraine’s accession to the EU.
This is stated in a report by VSquare.org, Censor.NET reports.
The audio recordings of the ministers’ conversations date from 2023 to 2025.
According to the recording, Lavrov was interested in a document related to negotiations on Ukraine’s accession to the EU. In particular, it concerned the issue of minority languages in Ukraine.
The conversation
Lavrov: "Listen, I also wanted to call and ask about the compromise you reached with the European Union regarding the start of accession talks with Ukraine. And there were reports that the language of national minorities played a decisive role."
Szijjártó: "Absolutely. That was the case."
Lavrov: "We are trying to obtain that very document, but..."
Szijjártó: "I will send it to you. That is not a problem."
Lavrov: "All right, Péter, if you can send me the document, I would appreciate it."
Szijjártó: "I will do so immediately. I will send it to my embassy in Moscow, and my ambassador will forward it to your chief of staff, and then it will be at your disposal."
A senior EU official said "with 99% certainty" that the document Szijjártó promised to send Lavrov was the negotiating framework document, which at that time was already public.
"I do not understand why Lavrov was even playing this game with him. That framework document is public," the official said.
One possibility, according to a senior Western intelligence official, was that Lavrov was simply testing the limits of how far Szijjártó was willing to go in providing information to Russia.
"It is almost like a loyalty test, to assess an asset’s willingness to follow orders or carry out tasks," the official said.
Background
It should be recalled that the previous day, audio recordings and transcripts of conversations between Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov and Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó appeared in the media, shedding light on their contacts amid discussions in the EU over sanctions policy against Russia.
