Hungarian volunteer fighting for Ukraine charged in absentia

In Hungary, the prosecutor’s office has charged a citizen who joined the Ukrainian army in 2024 and is participating in military operations against Russia.

According to the investigation, the man went to Ukraine last spring. After a short training course, he began serving in a combat unit that carried out reconnaissance and assault missions.

The prosecutor’s office accuses him of participating in an armed conflict outside the country’s organized armed forces. Since his whereabouts are currently unknown, law enforcement agencies have put him on the wanted list. It has been proposed to hold a trial in absentia, with prosecutors demanding imprisonment as a form of punishment.

This is not the first case of this kind; in February, the Budapest prosecutor’s office already demanded a prison sentence for another volunteer who also participated in the war on the side of the Ukrainian Armed Forces.

Hungary is also considering connecting to the oil pipeline that runs from the port of Odesa to the western border of Ukraine, to diversify raw material supplies and reduce dependence on Russian oil.