Hungary Blocks Access to 12 Ukrainian News Websites

Hungary announced on Monday that it is restricting access to 12 Ukrainian news websites, following a similar action taken earlier this month by Ukraine. The decision adds further strain to already tense relations between the two neighbouring countries amid the ongoing war in Ukraine.
Earlier in the month, Ukraine blocked several websites it accused of spreading pro-Russian narratives, including eight Hungarian-language portals. One of those was origo.hu, a well-known site with ties to Hungary’s government.
Gergely Gulyás, Chief of Staff to Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, explained the move in a Facebook post, calling it a “proportional response to an unjustified action” by Ukraine.
The blocked Ukrainian websites are widely read domestically, and some focus on topics like Ukraine’s path to European Union membership — an area where Hungary has frequently acted as an obstacle. One of the affected outlets, European Pravda, often reports on Hungary’s opposition to Ukraine’s EU accession efforts.
Gulyás claimed that Ukrainian authorities banned the Hungarian sites because they had published articles critical of Western sanctions on Russia, military assistance to Ukraine, and what they described as internal divisions within the EU and NATO.
He also suggested that the censorship was politically motivated, targeting outlets that reported on the influence of the Soros Foundation — a frequent subject of criticism by Hungary’s ruling party.
Hungarian officials have often taken a more reserved stance on military aid to Ukraine and maintain a notably different relationship with Moscow compared to most NATO and EU members.
There was no immediate reaction from Ukrainian authorities regarding Hungary’s decision.