00:01Hungary's Foreign Minister Peter Seato has acknowledged that he regularly contacts his Russian counterpart, Sergei Lavrov, during private EU meetings
00:11on foreign affairs.
00:13The Hungarian government had earlier dismissed the allegations as fake news, but Seato acknowledged they were true during a speech
00:21on Monday evening.
00:23The allegations are explosive as EU member states are bound by the principle of sincere cooperation and the content of
00:31such meetings is understood to be confidential.
00:35In a video posted on social media on Tuesday, Seato rejected claims that he had breached security protocols, insisting that
00:43secrets are not discussed at the ministerial-level meetings in question.
00:48Seato said he also speaks to his counterparts in Serbia, Israel, the United States and Turkey, both before and after
00:57EU meetings on foreign affairs.
00:59The revelations come as political tensions mount ahead of Hungary's parliamentary elections the next month, in which the ruling party
01:07is behind in the polls against opposition leader Peter Magyar's teaser party.
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