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Trial of former Jobbik politician accused of spying starts
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The trial in Budapest of Béla Kovács, an MEP and former Jobbik representative accused of spying on the institutions of the European Union (EU) and of committing financial fraud and forgery, started behind closed doors on Tuesday.
Because the evidence involves state secrets, only the judge, prosecutors, defence lawyers and defendants were present in court.
Kovács has denied the allegations, telling the press before proceedings of his unawareness that his interactions had been with intelligence agents.
The former Jobbik politician is accused of providing information to Russian intelligence agencies on energy issues, European parliamentary elections, domestic affairs in Hungary and the expansion of the Paks nuclear power plant.
The aim was to undermine the EU from within and promote Russian interests, according to the charges.
The Constitutional Protection Office, Hungary’s internal security intelligence agency, filed a report against Kovács in April 2014 after it was revealed by the civil national security services that he had regularly met Russian diplomats and paid monthly visits to Moscow.