Hungary Moves to Jail Its Own Citizen for Joining Ukraine’s Fight Against Russia

Hungarian prosecutors have filed charges against a citizen who voluntarily joined the Ukrainian Armed Forces and has been serving in combat operations against Russia since spring 2024.

According to Hungary’s Csongrád-Csanád County Prosecutor’s Office, the individual — a resident of Makó, located in southeastern Hungary — traveled to Ukraine in April 2024 and enlisted in a Ukrainian military battalion.

Prosecutors state that after a brief training period, he participated in armed engagements and carried out reconnaissance and combat missions.

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The Hungarian authorities have charged the man in absentia with “illegal recruitment by joining an armed organization outside the forces of an allied state for the purpose of engaging in armed conflict.”

The Prosecutor’s Office has requested that the court in Szeged proceed with the trial and issue a verdict in the man’s absence, as his current location remains unknown.

Hungarian media note that the individual has served in the Ukrainian Armed Forces for over a year.

Earlier in May, Ukraine’s Security Service (SBU) uncovered a Hungarian military intelligence spy network operating in Zakarpattia. According to the SBU, the network collected data on air defense systems, troop deployments, and local sentiment toward a potential Hungarian military presence.

Two agents were detained, including a former serviceman activated in 2024 and tasked with recruiting informants and relaying sensitive information across the border.

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