Orban broke the pact, acknowledged Belarusian ambassador

The Hungarian ambassador handed over the credentials to Alexander Lukashenko. This act by an EU member state is a precedent after 2020, when forged elections took place in Belarus. Brussels did not acknowledge the result back then, which led the member states to decide not to send new ambassadors to Minsk.

On Thursday, the Hungarian Ambassador, Zita Ilona Bencsik, presented Alexander Lukashenko with Letters of Credence, which sets a precedent in the current political situation. The European Union has not recognized the results of the presidential elections in Belarus in 2020, which were widely seen as falsified. In connection with this, EU member countries decided not to send new ambassadors to Minsk, delegating diplomats at the rank of chargé d'affaires instead.

The credential presentation ceremony by Ambassador Bencsik was widely reported by state media. The Hungarian diplomat was among eleven ambassadors who presented their credentials to Lukashenko. Among them were representatives from such countries as Zimbabwe, Egypt, Kazakhstan, Equatorial Guinea, Angola, Uganda, Cambodia, the Philippines, Jordan, and Colombia.

On September 14th, Bencsik presented a copy of the credentials to the Belarusian Foreign Minister, Siarhiej Alejnikow. The opposition portal Zerkalo.io then emphasized that this is the first such case since 2020, when EU countries did not recognize the results of the elections in Belarus, and Lukashenko is not recognized as the legitimate leader of the country.

The last ambassador to present a copy of his credentials to the then head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was the head of the French mission, Nicolas de Lacoste, in December 2020. After delivering the credentials only to the head of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, due to Paris's refusal to present credentials to Lukashenko, de Lacoste had to leave Belarus in October 2021.

Hungary is one of the few Western countries that maintain contact with the official Minsk. In February of this year, the Hungarian Foreign Minister visited Minsk, and in the spring, Siarhiej Alejnik visited Hungary as part of a return visit.

The diplomatic contacts of EU countries with Belarus have been limited following the mass election protests and the onset of a wave of repression in 2020. Additionally, Minsk's support for Russia in the war with Ukraine also influenced the limitation of diplomatic contacts.