Hungarian defence minister asked to resign
“It is high time that the casino minister of defence resigned his post,” Péter Magyar, the leader of the opposition Tisza party, said in a statement on Wednesday.
Magyar accused Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky of having lied regarding a 2022 visit to Ukraine by former army chief Romulusz Ruszin-Szendi, saying the defence minister had also harmed Hungary’s national security interests.
According to Magyar, defence minister Szalay-Bobrovniczky had said that Ruszin-Szendi had travelled to Ukraine without permission. “The truth is that the then-army chief travelled to the front with the knowledge and permission of the prime minister, to gather first-hand information of the Russia-Ukraine conflict.” Ruszin-Szendi had also written a report to Prime Minister Viktor Orbán on the experiences gained, he said.
Magyar also rejected the allegation that the former army chief had joined Tisza for financial gain. “The man accusing the frugally living lieutenant general, who is helping Tisza without compensation … is someone who has made a ten-billion fortune with casinos, factories and lately, a 1.5 billion estate on Lake Balaton…” Magyar said.
In response, Szalay-Bobrovniczky said on Facebook that Ruszin-Szendi had encouraged the military leadership of NATO and the European Union to support Ukraine. “While admiring Brussels, the Tisza party has failed to notice that the world has changed,” he said. “Today, US President Donald Trump is criticising [Ukrainian President Volodymyr] Zelensky and the mindless support of Ukraine.”
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