Orbán’s political rival, Péter Magyar, who also worked at the Hungarian permanent representation under Várhelyi, accused him last week of holding back information about his time as an ambassador.
“In my opinion, Olivér Várhelyi, the current EU Commissioner and former EU Ambassador (and my former boss), did not reveal the whole truth when he denied this during the official investigation the other day,” Magyar wrote in a Facebook post.
“It was a common fact at the EU Embassy in Brussels, that during the period of János Lázár’s ministry in 2015-2018, secret service people were deployed to Brussels,” he continued.
Hungariang government minister Lázár, who oversaw the Hungarian intelligence service while Várhelyi worked as ambassador, said last week that although he didn’t recall “the exact details, my duty is to protect my country,” adding: “If Hungarian intelligence had gone to Brussels … I would honor them, not reprimand them.”
Track record
The spying allegations also raise the question of why von der Leyen sought to keep Várhelyi in place. Several people with knowledge of her support for him say the president intervened to put pressure on MEPs to accept Várhelyi as commissioner in 2024, after he was forced to undergo another round of written questions from lawmakers who remained unconvinced.
“The president(-elect)’s role is in the process of candidate proposals from the member states, the agreement of the list with the Council, and the presentation of the whole college [of commissioners],” a European Commission spokesperson said. “After that it is in the hands of the European Parliament.”