Szijjártó called Lavrov during Wagner mercenaries' mutiny to ask if he was all right

Investigative journalist Szabolcs Panyi published the transcript of another phone conversation between former Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on his Substack.

The call, initiated by Szijjártó, took place in the afternoon hours of June 24, 2023, a few hours after Russian mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin’s Wagner Group rebelled against the Russian military leadership. Prigozhin’s mercenaries quickly took over the headquarters of the Southern Military District headquarters in Rostov and then set off toward Moscow in a convoy.

Prigozhin claimed that the Russian army had struck one of his camps, so he vowed revenge against Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu and Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov. The Kremlin denied there had been an attack on the Wagner camp, and the FSB launched proceedings against Prigozhin for armed rebellion. The leader of Wagner claimed that this was not a coup, merely a “march for justice” against the army’s leadership; nevertheless, on the morning of June 24, President Vladimir Putin called the operation a betrayal and warned of the danger of civil war.

It was in response to this situation that the former Hungarian foreign minister called Lavrov to express his concern, attempting to find out just how serious the situation in Russia was. He also offered to help the Russian Foreign Minister, a proposal Lavrov responded to with laughter. According to Szabolcs Panyi’s account, the conversation between the two foreign ministers went as follows:

• Szíjjártó: Hello, I just wanted to know if things are under control and that you are OK?
• Lavrov: Absolutely under control, President has said everything that was needed. Don’t worry, we will keep it quiet.
• Szíjjártó: Have you stopped their (Wagner) advance towards Moscow?
• Lavrov: The army is in control. I don’t follow the events live. The army knows perfectly well what to do.
• Szíjjártó: So these are just fake news that the president and prime minister have left Moscow?
• Lavrov: These news have been debunked hours ago already. Don’t worry and don’t believe what the social media is saying.
• Szíjjártó: Are they (Wagner) in Voronezh and Rostov?
• Lavrov: I don’t follow everything from hour to hour. The army is on the ground and they have all the capabilities and knowledge on what to do.
• Szíjjártó: So you personally are completely fine?
• Lavrov: Absolutely. More than fine.
• Szíjjártó: Well, if you ever need anything personally, just let me know.
• Lavrov: (laughing). I don’t need anything. There is no problem. Thank you for calling.

The audio recording of the conversation was obtained by a consortium consisting of the Central European investigative journalism site VSquare, the Polish outlet Frontstory, the Russian outlet The Insider, the Estonian outlet Delfi, and the Slovak Ján Kuciak Investigative Center as part of a project called “Kremlin Hotline.” We have sent questions about the recording to Péter Szijjártó; if we receive a response, we will publish it.

Some of the audio recordings and transcripts obtained as part of the project were released at the end of March and beginning of April; these revealed that, at the request and instruction of Sergey Lavrov and other Russian leaders, Péter Szijjártó had Russian individuals, banks, and companies removed from the European Union’s sanctions list. According to another recording, there were also instances when Lavrov asked the Hungarian foreign minister for help in obtaining EU documents.

The approximate date of this most recently published conversation was determined based on one of Szijjártó’s questions. On the afternoon of June 24, rumors began circulating—citing flight-tracking websites—that one of Putin’s presidential Il-96 aircraft had taken off from Moscow and was heading northwest toward St. Petersburg and the Valday residence near Tver, before disappearing from the radar. Theories soon began to spread on social media that other government leaders, in addition to Putin, were also leaving the Russian capital.

It was these rumors Szijjártó was asking Lavrov about, and Lavrov immediately dismissed them, saying they were untrue and had long since been refuted. Dmitry Peskov, the spokesperson for the Russian President, had indeed announced shortly before that Putin was at work in the Kremlin, just as Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin, who was also at his office conducting government meetings.

Prigozhin’s rebellion came to an unexpected end on the evening of June 24. The mercenaries heading toward Moscow stopped, and Prigozhin announced that he was turning his men back because he did not want to shed Russian blood. According to the Kremlin, a deal had been struck with the mediation of Belarusian President Aleksander Lukashenko: Prigozhin would be allowed to depart for Belarus, and the mercenaries would be granted amnesty. Two months later, on August 23, 2023, while flying from Moscow to St. Petersburg, Prigozhin’s plane was blown up; in addition to the former Wagner leader, nine other people were killed in the attack.