Expelling the Spies: Hungary's Calculated Move Against Russia Hungary's decision to expel 10 Russian diplomats has been met with predictable indignation from Moscow, but beneath the rhetoric lies a nuanced shift in Budapest's approach to its eastern neighbor.
This move is less about a sudden repudiation of Russia than a calculated attempt by Hungary's new government to reassert control over its foreign policy and distance itself from Viktor Orbán's pro Kremlin stance.
Hungary had long been content to parrot Moscow's talking points on Ukraine, even as it quietly lined its pockets with cheap Russian oil imports.