The incident occurred a week before legislative elections in Hungary, considered crucial, as the opposition leader, Péter Magyar (Tisza), is ahead in the polls and could end the 16 years of power with absolute majorities of the populist prime minister, Viktor Orbán (Fidesz).
Serbian authorities opened an investigation after Army and Police agents found two backpacks and two large packages of explosives with detonators in the town of Kanjiza, on the border with Hungary.
So far, there is no information about the origin of the explosives or who may have placed them at the location.
The Hungarian Prime Minister called an urgent meeting of the Defense Council and, in the end, announced the strengthening of military control of the Balkan Stream gas pipeline (an extension of the Turk Stream) after the Serbian authorities detected “an action of sabotage in the Vojvodina section of the gas pipeline that supplies Hungary”.
In a video posted on social media, Orbán stated that “Ukraine’s ambitions represent a danger to Hungary’s life”, after indicating that 60% of the gas consumed in the country is imported through this pipeline.
“Ukraine has been working for years to cut off Europe from Russian energy supplies: they blew up the Nord Stream gas pipeline and blocked the gas pipeline that reaches Hungary. This year, with the closure of the Druzhba oil pipeline, they imposed an oil blockade. Hungary and the Russian section of the Turk Stream gas pipeline are the target of continuous military attacks”, he commented.
Also after the meeting, Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó stated on social media that “this attempted terrorist attack is perfectly in line with a series of actions with which the Ukrainians constantly try to cut off the supply of gas and oil from Russia to Europe.”
In the election campaign, the Hungarian leader has repeatedly attacked Ukraine, accusing Kiev of trying to disrupt the energy security of Hungary, an EU member state, which, like Slovakia, continues to import Russian gas.
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