Commission spokesperson Anitta Hipper said ministerial discussions in the EU Council rely on trust among member states and between governments and EU institutions.
“Reports concerning the alleged disclosure by the Hungarian foreign minister to his Russian counterpart of details of ministerial-level discussions in the Council are therefore very worrying”, Hipper told reporters in Brussels.
“We expect explanations from the Hungarian government”, she added.
Hipper did not say whether EU institutions would launch an internal investigation or strengthen security rules for Council meetings.
“For now, we are waiting for explanations and at this stage we remain there”, she said.
The Washington Post reported on Sunday that Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto regularly called Russia during breaks in EU meetings to give his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov live updates on the talks.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said the report should not surprise anyone.
“The news that Orban’s people are passing detailed information to Moscow about EU Council meetings should surprise no one”, Tusk wrote on X, adding that Poland had long harbored such suspicions.
Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski also commented on X, writing to Szijjarto: “That would explain a lot, Peter”.
The Hungarian government rejected the report as false.
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Source: PAP