Hungary’s last communist-era premier says he saw reports on fellow soldiers’ politics and sexuality attributed to young Orbán, who denies it
The premier, Miklós Németh, says he returned the papers in 1990, and journalist Szabolcs Panyi writes they may have vanished with a KGB-trained spy chief’s files.
Former Hungarian Prime Minister Miklós Németh revealed in a statement that he once possessed reports attributed to young Viktor Orbán, detailing fellow conscripts' political, sexual, and religious orientations from his military service in Zalaegerszeg. Németh made this claim in an interview with investigative journalist Szabolcs Panyi, which was published on November 5.
This came as Hungary opened its communist-era secret police files to the public and as Orbán continued to be backed by the US administration for the position of UN secretary-general. Németh could not confirm the authenticity of the reports or who wrote them, but he believed he recognized the handwriting and signature. He returned the documents to their original recipient, Defense Minister Ferenc Kárpáti, and did not keep any copies.
Years later, Németh inquired about the fate of the documents, and Kárpáti claimed they were with Géza Stefán, who had been trained by the KGB and stored compromising files on Hungary's elite. These files were reportedly lost following Stefán's death in 2009. Orbán denies being the target and claims he was targeted during his military service, stating that he refused recruitment attempts and that he and his wife were wiretapped.
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