Kremlin Hotline: How Szijjártó Helped Weaken EU Sanctions at Lavrov's Request

An international consortium of investigative newsrooms — Poland's VSquare, Estonia's Delfi, Russian exile outlet The Insider, Slovakia's Ján Kuciak Investigative Center (ICJK), and Poland's FrontStory — published on Tuesday, March 31, transcripts and audio recordings of phone calls between Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó and several Russian officials. The same investigation was independently published by OCCRP (Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project), one of the largest international investigative networks. According to both consortiums, the materials capture communications in which Szijjártó, at Moscow's request, discusses steps toward removing Russian oligarchs and companies from the European Union's sanctions lists. VSquare ↗ OCCRP ↗

The key recording is from August 30, 2024. According to the published transcript, Lavrov called Szijjártó shortly after his return from St. Petersburg and said: "I'm calling at Alisher's request, he just reminded me that you were doing something regarding his sister." In the published transcript, Szijjártó says: "Yes, absolutely... together with the Slovaks we are submitting a proposal to the European Union to remove her from the list. We will submit it next week." The reference was to Gulbahor Ismailova, sister of Russian oligarch Alisher Usmanov, one of the wealthiest Russians with an estimated net worth exceeding $3.4 billion. Usmanov has in the past been described as one of Vladimir Putin's favorites. Euronews ↗ The Insider ↗

The recording of the phone call (94 seconds) was published by The Insider as part of the investigation. It captures part of the conversation between Szijjártó and Lavrov from August 30, 2024, which several media outlets reference. The recording also includes the sentence "together with the Slovaks we are submitting a proposal."


Ismailova was placed on the EU sanctions list in April 2022 after an investigation revealed she was the ultimate beneficiary of her brother's assets — including a superyacht worth $600 million. Her appeal to the EU General Court was rejected in 2023. Ismailova's removal from the sanctions list took place in March 2025 — seven months after the recorded phone call — as part of a broader compromise among member states, when Hungary threatened to veto the mandatory six-month extension of sanctions, which apply to more than 2,700 Russian individuals and entities. Along with Ismailova, Russian businessman Viatcheslav Moshe Kantor and Sports Minister Mikhail Degtyarev were also removed. Hungary had originally demanded the removal of eight names, including oligarchs Mikhail Fridman and Usmanov himself, but the other member states agreed to only four. RFERL ↗ VSquare ↗

The investigation also reveals Szijjártó's communication with Russian Deputy Energy Minister Pavel Sorokin from the summer of 2025. In this conversation, according to OCCRP, Szijjártó boasted: "I did the maximum to cancel it. The fact is I've already removed 72 entities from the list, but there were 128. I'm trying to continue." Investigative journalists note it is not clear exactly which entities the numbers refer to. In the same conversation, according to the recordings, Szijjártó promised Sorokin that he would block the EU's 18th sanctions package, which targeted the so-called shadow fleet of Russian oil tankers. This concerned primarily the Dubai-based company 2Rivers (formerly Coral Energy), which according to the EU transported oil from Russian state giant Rosneft under false flags and sold it above the internationally set price cap. According to the investigation, Szijjártó even asked Sorokin for help: "If they can help identify direct negative impacts on Hungary, I would be very grateful" — thus seeking arguments from Moscow with which he could justify his opposition to other EU members. Despite his efforts, the 18th sanctions package including 2Rivers was ultimately approved on July 18, 2025, after which the company began liquidation proceedings. OCCRP ↗ United24 ↗

According to the investigation, Szijjártó's cooperation with Moscow extended beyond oligarchs. As part of the 16th sanctions package in February 2025, according to OCCRP findings, Hungary pushed for the removal of Patriarch Kirill, head of the Russian Orthodox Church, from the sanctions list — for the second time since June 2022. According to the recordings, Szijjártó also boasted that he had prevented the sanctioning of a St. Petersburg bank and a bank linked to Hungary's Paks nuclear project, which is being carried out by Russia's Rosatom. The Insider ↗ VSquare ↗

Reactions in Europe were sharp. Former Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis, responding to the published materials, compared Szijjártó to the legendary Cold War spy: "Every generation has its Kim Philby. It seems Péter Szijjártó plays this role with enthusiasm." According to an unnamed senior European intelligence officer quoted by OCCRP, "if you removed the names from the transcripts and showed them to any operations officer, they would swear it was a record of an intelligence officer working with his agent." In December 2021, Szijjártó personally received the Russian Order of Friendship from Lavrov — an honor awarded to foreign nationals for developing cooperation with Russia. OCCRP ↗ EUObserver ↗

The Slovak connection emerges from the published recordings, according to the investigation. In the recorded conversation with Lavrov, Szijjártó explicitly mentions "the Slovaks" as partners in submitting proposals to remove sanctioned individuals. According to EUObserver, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent a letter to Prime Minister Robert Fico requesting support for lifting sanctions against Usmanov, in which, according to EUObserver, he described him as "a philanthropist and businessman who is being treated unfairly." Fico then, according to the same outlet, described Usmanov as a philanthropist at the EU level and called the removal of his sister "the right thing to do." In March 2026, according to RFERL, Slovakia first threatened to veto the entire sanctions list, but ultimately backed down from the demand. Former Slovak ambassador to NATO Peter Bátor described the whole situation to EUObserver as "kowtowing to Moscow" and "serving Hungarian interests and Orbán's regime," warning that conversations between Slovak officials and Russia are likely being recorded as well. EUObserver ↗ RFERL ↗

In Slovakia, the opposition reacted. Ivan Korčok of Progressive Slovakia, according to the SITA agency, described the cooperation of Hungary and Slovakia with Russia as "treason and collaboration." MP Branislav Gröhling, according to EUObserver, filed a criminal complaint against Prime Minister Fico on suspicion of high treason — a case that, according to the same source, is being investigated by the National Crime Agency. Prime Minister Fico denies the accusations. SITA ↗ EUObserver ↗

The European Commission described the published information as "concerning" and, according to Euronews, is demanding an explanation from Budapest. The European Union had already, according to OCCRP, restricted Hungary's access to classified documents and moved key negotiations into smaller groups — according to five diplomats quoted by OCCRP, this is an unprecedented step signaling "a complete breakdown of trust." Czech President Petr Pavel, responding to the revelations, called on the Czech Republic to reassess its relations with Hungary, including the scope of shared information. Euronews ↗ OCCRP ↗

Szijjártó, according to Euronews, called the release of the recordings "fake news" and accused foreign intelligence services of wiretapping his phone calls "with the active participation of Hungarian journalists." At the same time, he admitted to regular communication with Lavrov but denied leaking confidential information. According to OCCRP, neither Lavrov nor Szijjártó responded to requests for comment. At a pre-election rally, according to OCCRP, chants of "traitor" and "Russian spy" could be heard from the crowd. The scandal comes twelve days before Hungary's parliamentary elections on April 12, in which Orbán's Fidesz, according to a poll by the 21 Kutatóintézet institute, is trailing the opposition party Tisza. Euronews ↗ OCCRP ↗