"Hungary's EU commissioner has denied any knowledge of alleged attempted spying by the Hungarian government during his time as the country's top diplomat in Brussels, a commission spokesperson said. Oliver Varhelyi sat down with European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, on Sunday to discuss the allegations reported by a consortium of investigative journalists last week. On Monday, the commission's chief spokesperson, Paula Pinho, said:"
"The commissioner said he was not aware of these attempts. An internal group set up to investigate the matter was continuing its work, Pinho added. Another commission spokesperson did not respond directly to a question about whether Varhelyi, a loyal ally of Hungary's prime minister, Viktor Orban, was continuing to receive confidential documents, citing operational security of the ongoing investigation."
Oliver Varhelyi denied any knowledge of alleged Hungarian government attempts to spy on the European Commission during his time as Hungary's permanent representative in Brussels. Von der Leyen questioned Varhelyi after investigative reports by a consortium including Direkt36 alleged recruitment efforts by Hungary's Information Office dating from 2012 to 2018. The reports say Hungarian intelligence used diplomatic cover to target Commission staff and obtain classified documents. An internal Commission group is investigating the matter and continues its work. A spokesperson declined to say whether Varhelyi still received confidential documents, citing operational security of the ongoing investigation.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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