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Abstract: Hungary is often viewed as Russia's new Trojan horse in the European Union owing to its deepening relations with Russia as part of its "Eastern Opening" policy, its increasing energy proximity and strong opposition to the EU sanctions. This article briefly outlines Hungary's "Eastern Opening" policy in the Russian context and then analyzes whether the Trojan Horse observation is correct by discussing how Hungary's trade and energy relations with Russia have evolved. It goes on to look at the Paks-2 deal and Hungarian reactions to the sanctions regime before concluding that by signing the Paks-2 deal, the Orbán government drove Hungary to a point at which the Russian side of its foreign policy came into unavoidable conflict with its relations within the EU. If the deal is set in motion, Hungary risks being tied to Moscow's orbit and thus becoming its Trojan Horse.
On coming to power in 2010, the government of Viktor Orbán, leader of Fidesz-Hungarian Civic Alliance, soon declared that Hungary's foreign policy would be taking a new direction and adopting what he called a policy of "Eastern Opening." At the heart of the new policy lay the desire to develop economic relations with the non-Western world and thus counterbalance Hungary's strong economic ties with the West. Among the countries targeted by this policy, Russia quickly rose to prominence, and as a consequence, relations grew increasingly cordial between Budapest and Moscow in 2013-2014. The growing proximity is aptly symbolized in Hungary's signing of the most important bilateral agreement in a long time: the agreement to extend Hungary's only nuclear power plant, Paks; reached without being opened up to competition and without western companies being invited to participate. According to the deal, Rosatom will build two new reactors almost entirely on the basis of Russian credit, which will in turn mean that Hungary will be indebted to Russia until the middle of the century. Against the backdrop of Russian aggression in Ukraine that unfolded during 2014 and the Hungarian government's turn away from liberal democracy, Hungarian-Russian ties have raised concerns among Western observers and the country's allies in the European Union and NATO. All in all, Hungary is now often referred to as Russia's Trojan Horse, along with Cyprus and Bulgaria, countries...
