“Hungarian Iron Dome” deployed near the Ukrainian border, expert says Putin will attack Hungary
Kristóf Szalay-Bobrovniczky, the Hungarian defence minister, wrote last week in a Facebook post that the Hungarian Defence Forces were closely monitoring the situation in Transcarpathia following last week’s Russian attacks and the heightened radar surveillance. Blikk wrote that the ‘Hungarian Iron Dome’ has been deployed near the Ukrainian border because even experts believe the war may reach Hungarian territories. The ministry did not share exactly where they placed the air defence system.
Orbán talked about the darkest days of the war
We wrote last week that media reports talked about two Russian missiles shot down close to the Hungarian-Ukrainian border over Pósaháza (Pavsino) and Feketepatak (Csornyij Potik). For example, almost 95% of the population of Feketepatak is Hungarian, located only 20 kilometres from the Hungarian-Ukrainian border.
The Hungarian defence minister said then that they were closely monitoring the situation. However, there is more happening in Northeastern Hungary, as the media reported before.
Hungarian media, especially the government-close outlets, regularly write about the possible escalation of the ongoing war in Ukraine. Following the deployment of North Korean troops in Ukraine, multiple Western powers allowed Ukraine to use their weapons against targets in Russia. The consequence was the Russian nuclear doctrine’s modification, followed by a similar change in the corresponding American document.
PM Orbán said in his morning interview that the possibility of escalation was never this high before, and we must wait until Trump’s inauguration in January to ease the conflict and introduce an armistice or peace.
Hungarian Iron Dome near Ukrainian border
However, it seems Hungary is preparing for the worst-case scenario. The Hungarian Defence Ministry did not want to comment or provide further details, but Blikk believes that the defence minister decided to deploy Hungary’s NASAMS (Norwegian Advanced Surface to Air Missile System) air defence system in Northeast Hungary. Szalay-Bobrovniczky said that the advanced air defence systems allow Hungarian troops to increase their efficiency concerning detection accuracy and shorten reaction times.
The new NASAMS-3 system was inaugurated in Győr last October.
Spain, Lithuania and the USA also use this air defence system, which proved very effective against Russian attacks in Ukraine. The NASAMS-3 cannot shoot down ballistic missiles, but it is good against drones, missiles and air force. Depending on the rocket type it uses, its range spans 8-50 kilometres.
Furthermore, the system’s effectiveness can be increased by the ELM–2084 radars used by the Israeli Iron Dome.
Russia may attack Transcarpathia and even Hungarian regions
István Gyarmati, a Hungarian national security expert, said it was high time to deploy the Hungarian air defence system in Northern Hungary. Mr Gyarmati said the Hungarian Defence Forces must always prepare for the worst-case scenario, and currently, Hungary is threatened only by Ukraine.
He said he expected fights even in Transcarpathia, a region populated by a community of more than 100,000 indigenous Hungarians. It has happened only twice so far, as it was Ukraine’s westernmost region that fell victim to Russian attacks. Mr Gyarmati added that provided the war escalates, Russian missiles may even hit Hungarian territories.
Ukraine events in recent days show need for immediate peace, says FM Szijjártó
Events in Ukraine in recent days such as the strikes on Transcarpathia and the launch of long-range missiles confirm that an immediate peace settlement is needed because there is a severe risk of escalation, the foreign minister said on Thursday.
The ministry cited Péter Szijjártó saying during his tour of Hungary promoting the National Consultation survey that in Brussels his European Union counterparts appeared unnerved largely in view of Donald Trump’s election win and because they expected that Trump likely remembered all the things they said about him in the past eight years.
“There were very few of us in the room with a real smile on their faces, sitting relaxed during the discussion of the day’s agenda. What’s important is that we have always stood on the right side and we are still standing there,” he added.
“After the low points of political cooperation in the past four years, I believe there is good hope that Hungary-US political ties will return to where they used to be during Trump’s first presidency…” he said.
He cited the US decision to cancel an agreement on double taxation avoidance, and that Hungarian opposition parties and the media had been receiving US financial support in recent years, neither of which were “an expression of sincere friendship”.
“It was clear that if the results in America in early November had been different, then we would have been in a position where we must really pull up our socks. We still have to do that because there are two months left and it is easy to see that the Democrats in government and their liberal friends in Europe decided to make all possible moves to thwart the possibility of making peace in January,” he added.
“Now there is the need for wisdom, strategic calm and consideration on the part of the pro-peace camp, so that the hope that was so bright in the sky just a few days ago still survives on January 20,” he added.
He welcomed the fact that the “globalist, pro-war offer” had been defeated in the US by the “pro-peace, economically patriotic approach”. He said that the latter had become dirty words in Europe. “If someone is pro-peace, they immediately get branded. Being pro-peace has become equal to siding with Putin and being Lavrov-friendly,” he added.
Szijjártó said the West has delivered hundreds of millions of euros worth of weapons to Ukraine in recent years, but this had failed to bring about a turning point on the battlefield. He said the conflict could only be resolved through negotiations.
“What do further weapons deliveries lead to?” Szijjártó said. “To a protracted war, to more casualties, more suffering, more destruction and the danger of the war’s expansion.”
“Every development of the last few days, including the missile strike on Transcarpathia, the alleged launch of ballistic missiles and the launch of long-range missiles all underscore the need for immediate peace,” he said.
“An immediate ceasefire and immediate negotiations are needed because a single accident, a single bad decision, a miscalculation or a misunderstood communication is enough for the whole world to be engulfed in flames,” he warned.
“So it’s important to strengthen peace efforts in every way possible and to remain committed over the next two months in order to avoid any kind of trouble that could trigger irreversible developments,” Szijjártó said.
Meanwhile, he said the US presidential election had brought about “a completely new reality in geopolitics and the global economy”.
“It’s clear that people are getting fed up in Europe as well,” he said. “We’ve been living under the threat of migration for nine years now. Four years ago, the European Commission failed to manage Covid… And instead of having localised the war, the European Union — or at least quite a few EU and NATO member states — are practically taking steps to globalise the conflict.”
He said European leaders were “fully aware as to how big the problems are, but aren’t prepared to admit it, because that would raise the issue of holding them accountable”.
“The politicians of the European liberal mainstream don’t want to be confronted by this,” Szijjártó said, adding that it was “up to the people to do the work” in elections.
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What in God’s name is this a-hole Fidesz government doing supporting Russia and undermining NATO and the EU when the idea of a Russian attack on Hungary is now discussed? Hungary has been working day and night to prevent the EU from providing Ukraine with the weapons and funding to defend itself and Ukraine is the only thing that stands between Hungary and Russia. Fidesz puts all of Hungary at risk with its’ traitorous acts of alliance with Russia.
If hungaru and the eu is attacked, where are all hungarians planning to go? You dont want to received refuges and am sure many countries will not want to receive hungarians. Maybe you want to go to russia or china?
The NASM’s system was “inaugurated last October”. Where has it been positioned all of this time? Who did Fidesz protect Hungary from with this system – Austria, Slovenia, who? All this time Fidesz did not put the system on the eastern border because that would show that Hungary needs to protect itself from the 21st century Nazi regime which is Russia and Fidesz was doing business with and making friendship with the Russians all of this time.
Oh Boy……as well as blaming the US for everything else our Foreign Minister also blames the US for canceling what he calls “Double Taxation Avoidance” and for funding Fidesz opposition.
First, the double tax avoidance that Fidesz keeps harping about is about Income and Excise Taxes. When I settled here in 1996 the Hungarian Income Tax was 44% for high wage earners like me. Now it is 15%. What do you suppose that did to the guts of the so called “Double Taxation Avoidance”? Americans working here today have to rethink their entire “Income Tax” strategy…….and so do Hungarians working in the USA. So, the agreement that those nasty American politicians cancelled is not worth much to the Americans. Meanwhile the 25% VAT that was in effect when I came here in 1996 became 27% in 2012. Hmmmm, who was in charge of the government then? Yup, you guessed it. One might ask why it was so important to reduce the Income tax by 65.9% while increasing the VAT. It doesn’t take an economics professor to figure that one out. You could tell by the smiles on the faces of the Hungarian high wage earners.
The Foreign Minister didn’t miss a chance to blame the US for funding the opposition either. But, how much foreign funding has Fidesz enjoyed over the years? Rather than quoting billions of Euros, let’s just say…….a lot.
Now we’re going to have yet another overpriced “National Consultancy” to set those idiots in Brussels straight. Or is it just to run another billboard campaign to show how much the Hungarian regime is in tune with the people of Hungary? My fellow countrymen, get ready for a new record approval rate to be advertised nationwide soon.
How can the word DEMOCRACY have ANY application to the name Hungary ?
It just continues to build, that Hungary as a DEMOCRACY is a “thing” of the past, that’s if it ever existed post 1989.
What “gofers” we are to Russia, and it will impact deeper in Hungary than it already is, sooner than later.
It will be NATO or the EU that will attack Hungary and not Russia. There is such thing is coexistence. However, Hungarian/Ukrainian border must be well protected. NATO stopped being a defense force when it interfered in the Ukraine/Russia melee.
So much nonsense (using a very mild, family-friendly description here) in the article and especially the comments here. LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOL!
Russia’s not going to attack anyone, Trump assumes office in six weeks, a settlement will be negotiated in Ukraine, and the globalist-socialist wet dream of a world war will not materialize, to the relief of all the normal, decent people in the world and especially Europe.
A békét nem lehet behódolni és gyengének lenni, hanem csak az agresszor legyőzésével.
Putin, not even to his Presidency position, a lower in rank individual possible, would ring Orban and simple say ;
“We are leaving.
Just make certain the lights are on.
Enjoy the action.
Just keep following orders”.
Idiotic – to think there would be any DEFENCE from the Hungarian Military.
What again from Orban, his Fidesz Government, on the subject of this article is “Veiled” truth ?
Is it again a “Smoke Screen” ?
Is it again all Fabrication ?
Is it – “under orders” from the Kremlin, that is for the benefit of Russia, as a “widening” source of information gathering / availability for there War – Russia’s – on the Ukraine ?
What if – an “errant” Ballistic Missile or “other” – launched from someplace, by somebody – had a massive malfunction and it’s victim was the “supposed” – fence sitters- Hungary, in this Russian War on the Ukraine was – the “Iron Dome” was – OBLIVIATED ?
Don’t think it will be transparent in information it gathers with the Ukraine and “other” country’s of Democracy – who are supporting the Ukraine – in there War effort.
“If you WANT Peace, work for Justice.”
Anyone who would say that the EU and NATO would attack Hungary rather than Russia is a Putin ass kissing traitor.