The small black plaque on the facade of house No. 99 on Budapest’s grand Andrassy Boulevard marks an episode that happened in November 1956, when Soviet troops invaded Hungary and brutally crushed the country's short-lived uprising against the Communist Party. Some Soviet soldiers refused to take part in the bloodbath against the Hungarian freedom fighters — and were shot as a result.

The executions took place at the palace diagonally across the street from the plaque, inside what was then the Soviet Embassy, and is now the Embassy of the Russian Federation in Hungary. Some Kremlin officials still view the 1956 Hungarian Revolution as a "fascist uprising." Russia, which in many respects sees itself as the successor to the Soviet Union, never apologized for what happened in 1956.

Now, nearly 70 years later, Russia's embassy in Budapest is reportedly serving a Kremlin-run part-time command center for Hungary's election campaign. In collaboration with Prime Minister Viktor Orban, his government and his Fidesz party, the Kremlin is reportedly organizing smear campaigns against opposition candidate Peter Magyar. This has been suggested by a number of investigative journalists, as well as leaks from a session in the Hungarian parliament.

Russia's 'political technologists' 

It has been clear for months that the parliamentary election on April 12 will determine whether Hungary’s future tilts east or west. But recent developments have intensified these discussions: Vladimir Putin’s statements on Hungary, as well as Russia’s covert influence, show that the Hungarian election will ultimately be a geopolitical issue. At stake is Hungary’s allegiance to the European Union or to Russia.

Last week, the Hungarian investigative journalist Szabolcs Panyi, of the Vsquare news website, cited sources from European intelligence agencies in reporting that a three-person team of so-called political technologists had traveled to Hungary to help Orban secure another election victory. In Russia, the term "political technologists" refers to the advisers behind Putin’s string of election victories.

Panyi told DW that he had obtained information on interference by Russia ahead of Hungary's election from three different European intelligence sources. The Russian operatives are reportedly working under the supervision of Sergey Kiriyenko, deputy head of the presidential administration. Their task is to organize a social media campaign targeting Magyar and his Tisza Party. 

"The Orban government’s narrative on social media has been weak and unsuccessful so far," Panyi said. "The Russians want to help Orban take the campaign to a new level with their troll army, manipulation of the algorithm and fear-mongering content."

Warnings from EU intelligence agencies

Shortly after Panyi’s report was published, media reported on a confidential meeting of the National Security Committee in Hungary's parliament, where warnings from intelligence agencies regarding Russian political strategists in Budapest had been discussed. The government reportedly said it could not confirm their presence in the country.  

This week, the Financial Times reported that the Kremlin had commissioned the Moscow-based IT and disinformation firm Agency for Social Design (ASP) to support Orban in his election campaign. The agency is known in Russia for disinformation campaigns and is subject to sanctions by the EU, the US and other governments. 

The embassy’s press office and Russia's ambassador, Yevgeny Stanislavov, personally attacked Magyar — accusing him of spreading falsehoods. 

"We Hungarians are the heirs of the freedom fighters of 1956," Magyar wrote in a letter to Russia's ambassador. "No one can threaten or blackmail us." Magyar said the majority of Hungarians would vote in favor of the country's future within the European Union. He called on Orban to convene the National Security Council and "inform the people of Hungary about what is going on." 

Putin’s trusted partners 

Orban's government maintains closer ties with Russia than almost any other in Europe. However, the prime minister denies that the Kremlin is trying to influence Hungary's election campaign. Orban and Putin have held meetings almost every year since he became prime minister in 2010. Hungary is a steadfast consumer of Russian energy, buying more gas from the country now than it did before the Kremlin launched its all-out war on Ukraine in 2022, even as the EU and US impose sanctions. 

In 2025, Putin praised Orban as a "leader who represents national interests" and said that Europe would be "reborn" under politicians like the prime minister, In early March, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto traveled to Moscow for a meeting with Putin.

As a gesture of friendship, Putin handed over two Ukrainian prisoners of war of Hungarian descent who had previously expressed pro-Russia sentiments in Kremlin propaganda videos that had been shown on Hungarian state media. Last week, Putin threatened to cut off energy supplies to the Europea Union — but qualified this by saying that Russia supplies reliable partners such as Hungary and Slovakia.  

Investigative journalist Szabolcs Panyi sees this as a veiled threat and another way in which Putin is helping Orban in the election campaign. "He’s signaling to Hungarians that the gas stations will run dry and the economy will grind to a halt if they don’t vote for his comrade," Panyi said. 

This article originally appeared in German.