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SBU Identifies Hungarian Intelligence Officer Behind Spy Network in Western Ukraine
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![Photo of Dariia Mykhailenko]( "Photo of Dariia Mykhailenko")
The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) has identified a Hungarian military intelligence officer who allegedly coordinated an agent network uncovered in Zakarpattia region in spring 2025, the agency said in a statement.
According to the SBU, counterintelligence officers established that the network was run by a staff member of Hungarian military intelligence, identified as Zoltan Andre, who supervised agents gathering information about the region’s military defenses, social and political attitudes, and the possible reaction of the population in the event of the deployment of Hungarian troops.
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“The counterintelligence of the Security Service of Ukraine identified a Hungarian military intelligence officer who directed an agent network uncovered by the SBU in Zakarpattia in the spring of 2025,” the SBU said.
The statement noted that two members of the spy cell were detained in 2025 after collecting intelligence on the defense capabilities of the western region. Investigators said Andre personally held meetings with one of the agents in Hungary and coordinated his activities in Ukraine.
According to the SBU, Andre conducted intelligence work in Georgia between 2016 and 2020 while operating “under cover” as a representative of Hungary’s diplomatic mission, and after returning began what the agency described as intelligence and subversive activities against Ukraine in 2021.
The SBU said Andre recruited a former serviceman from Berehove district the same year and later placed him in a standby mode before activating him in September 2024 to conduct espionage in Zakarpattia.
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“It was documented how the traitor reconnoitered the locations of the Defense Forces, in particular attempting to identify combat positions of Ukrainian air defense systems protecting the skies over the western region of Ukraine. Also on Andre’s instructions, the agent was tasked with finding “candidates” for recruitment into the agent network of Hungarian military intelligence. Former and active servicemen, as well as employees of Ukraine’s law enforcement agencies, were of particular interest to the foreign intelligence officer,” the service added.
The SBU added that Andre allegedly used Hungarian diplomatic institutions in Zakarpattia as part of the recruitment process, targeting local residents who submitted personal data while applying for Hungarian citizenship.
“To recruit collaborators, the foreign intelligence officer promised money and various benefits from Hungary,” the statement said.
According to the investigation, recruitment meetings were often held inside Andre’s personal vehicle, and he used an operational alias for secrecy.
Meanwhile, Hungarian security officers allegedly gave a forced injection to one of several Ukrainian bank employees detained earlier this month during the seizure of armored cash vehicles in Hungary.
According to The Guardian, Ukrainian security sources said the injection was administered to an Oschadbank employee during questioning, raising concerns about the methods used during the operation.
Ukrainian officials had earlier reported that one of the detainees, who has diabetes, was injected against his will, after which his condition worsened and he required hospitalization.
According to The Guardian, sources in the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) believe the substance given was a “relaxant” intended to make the detainee more talkative during interrogation.
In addition, Hungary is bracing for a potentially tense period after the upcoming elections, amid growing concern over how Prime Minister Viktor Orbán could react if he is voted out of office.
As parliamentary elections approach, political debate in Budapest is increasingly centered not only on the vote itself but also on what may follow, including whether the losing side will recognize the outcome.
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