Secret organisation recruits volunteers in Hungary to fight for Russia in Ukraine

Since July, several Russian social media sites have published posts specifically targeting Hungarians, seeking Hungarian volunteers to fight alongside the Russians in Ukraine. One of the most prominent sites on the social media platform is called the Legion of Saint Stephen.

In a lengthy analysis by the Hungarian fact-checking website Lakmusz.hu, it is explained how the Legion operates and the extent of Russian influence in Hungary. 

Dear friends, we are once again recruiting volunteers (…) Combat experience is welcome but not necessary, we will teach you everything you need to know (…) We accept applications from everyone, but Hungarian citizens (regardless of nationality) will have priority in the selection process”- wrote  “Legion of Saint Stephen” on the Russian Vkontakte.

Participation in foreign war as mercenary is an illegal act in Hungary

Candidates are lured by the promise of high pay on the one hand, and the opportunity to fight a criminal anti-Western war on the other.  The organisation, which describes itself as a “volunteer battalion”, first appeared in 2014 during the armed conflict in eastern Ukraine. Lakmusz already identified two Hungarian citizens who fought on the Russian side in the conflict. An important addition is that the above mentioned call for volunteering at the Russian side is called prohibited recruitment. Under the Hungarian Penal Code (Article 146), it is punishable by 1 to 5 years imprisonment. At present, the Hungarian National Bureau of Investigation is conducting five criminal proceedings on reasonable suspicion of illegal recruitment.

What kind of organisation is Legion of St Stephen?

The recruitment ad was published on the Vkontakte page of the Legion of St Stephen, which has almost 7,000 followers. VK has also been used by Hungarians to express their pro-Russian views in a “censorship-free” environment. The Latin name of the site, the Legion of Saint Stephen, named after the founder of the Hungarian state, however the platform, mainly uses Russian text written with Cyrillic letters. The site is one of thousands of military blogs that have been discussing the war since the beginning of the conflict. It is also reporting from the field. The legion calls for close cooperation between Hungary and Russia in the spirit of historical revisionism. It is also very popular in Hungarian far-right circles, offering ideological identification and calling for the defence of European values, traditional gender roles and Christianity.