Hungarian FM speaks of Ukraine not investigating death of conscripted Hungarian man from Transcarpathia as fact

Although the Ukrainian State Investigation Bureau has not confirmed it yet, according to Magyar Nemzet, József Sebestyén's family has said that the bureau will not be launching an investigation into the death of the recently deceased Hungarian man from Transcarpathia – this was one of the things discussed on Wednesday morning in the programme called Harcosok órája (Warriors' Hour). This time, Balázs Németh hosted Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, who said that according to related news reports, the Ukrainian state authorities had refused to investigate.

"By refusing to investigate this case, the Ukrainian authorities have effectively acknowledged that in their country, forced conscription involving severe beatings and even having someone beaten to death is a practice that is institutionalized, accepted, ordered, and carried out by the state. The Ukrainian state is carrying out forced conscription as an established and accepted practice," the Hungarian Foreign Minister said in his strongly worded statement.

According to Péter Szijjártó, in any normal, civilized country, in a case like this, the authorities would immediately launch an investigation and “the perpetrators and their superiors who condoned it by turning a blind eye would immediately be apprehended and imprisoned, and such a practice would be stopped.

By contrast, he said, in Ukraine, everyone looks the other way and no one dares to speak out about such cases. "[...] which means that in Ukraine, this is a process which has been established, ordered and enforced by the state. Forced conscription is a tool of the state there," Szijjártó reiterated. "Not only does such a country have no place in the EU, it cannot be counted among civilized countries," he continued.

The Hungarian Foreign Minister also had a few comments about the EU related to the case: in his opinion, by not saying a single word about the forced conscriptions, Brussels is acknowledging that it condones and approves of it, which means that everything we are seeing in the name of forced conscription is happening with Brussels' implicit or explicit approval.

It has been weeks since the death of Sebestyén, who was part of the Hungarian ethnic minority in Transcarpathia, and the circumstances leading up to his death still remain unclear. Mandiner and other Hungarian pro-government papers reported that Sebestyén was beaten so badly after being conscripted that he succumbed to his injuries. Two videos of him have also been released: in one, he can be seen on all fours, and in the other, he is in severe pain, asking paramedics for help, who simply tell him to pull himself together and stand up. Telex's journalists traveled to Transcarpathia to speak to locals about the tragedy.

Ukrainian official statements, however, differ significantly from the claims made by the man's family and acquaintances, which is further complicated by the fact that in a post about the case, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán at one point shared a photo on social media which was not of Sebestyén. Russia expert András Rácz has repeatedly emphasized that, in addition to the government taking the appropriate steps, the situation should be handled with extreme calm, as this would increase the chances of a professional investigation.

From the outset, the case has been a source of serious tensions in the already strained Hungarian-Ukrainian relationship, which is why it is particularly important to clarify whether Sebestyén sustained any injuries after being mobilized and whether he was assaulted on account of his Hungarian nationality. Speaking in Brussels shortly after the news of Sebestyén’s death first surfaced, Péter Szijjártó demanded that three high-ranking Ukrainian officials be held accountable. Since then it has been reported that Ukraine has launched a full investigation into the death of József Sebestyén, but this is contrary to the Sebestyén family's claim that there is no investigation underway.

The Hungarian government and various platforms linked to the government and Fidesz have been keeping József Sebestyén's death very much in the public eye. Recently, a video made entirely using artificial intelligence and containing no real-life footage was posted in the closed Facebook group of Fidesz supporters called Harcosok Klubja (The Fight Club), which was launched and is managed by the team of the Prime Minister: in it, Ukrainian soldiers are shown dragging a man away from his family and later beating him to death.

After the video appeared, in response to our inquiry about it, the government’s information centre (KTK) wrote: “We are glad that such a video has been made. A Hungarian man was killed in Ukraine while being forcibly conscripted. Hungary owes József Sebestyén at least this much, that we remember him. This is what makes us a community.”

We sent questions to the Ukrainian State Investigation Bureau, the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and the Ukrainian Presidential Office in relation to Szijjártó's statements and the current status of the investigation.