No more danger after Péter Magyar’s victory? Hungarian military withdraws from critical infrastructure

Only two days after the devastating defeat of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, the Hungarian military has decided to withdraw from protecting Hungary’s critical infrastructure. This raises the fair question: was there ever a genuine threat, and if so, why do the Hungarian Defence Forces now believe the facilities no longer need their protection?

Today, two days after Péter Magyar’s exceptional victory in the general election, the Chief of the General Staff of the Hungarian Defence Forces ordered several military units to cease protecting Hungary’s critical infrastructure. 444.hu has learned that not all infrastructure sites will be abandoned by the armed forces.

In the final weeks of the campaign, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán claimed there was a danger of Ukrainian attacks on Hungary’s critical infrastructure (e.g. energy facilities). He therefore deployed soldiers to protect them. The operation took a very long time, as if it were not a priority for the military. At Easter, explosive devices were found near the TurkStream pipeline in Serbia, but the Serbian authorities immediately clarified that they were not linked to Ukraine or its armed forces. Nevertheless, Orbán ordered enhanced protection for even more critical infrastructure facilities.

The General Staff of the Hungarian Defence Forces now cites rationalisation in its statement. This is because, it says, the affected companies have enhanced their safety measures and expanded their security staff.

So far, 600 soldiers have taken part in the operation.

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