\n<\/p>\n
Hungary has placed the gas pipeline that straddles the Serbian border under military protection, its prime minister, Viktor Orb\u00e1n<\/a>, has said, as accusations of a false-flag operation continued to swirl before a crunch election at the weekend and an official visit on Tuesday from the US vice-president, JD Vance.<\/p>\n Orb\u00e1n travelled to Hungary\u2019s southern border with Serbia on Monday, one day after Serbia said it had found<\/a> \u201cexplosives of devastating power\u201d near a pipeline that carries Russian natural gas to Hungary and beyond.<\/p>\n Coming days before a hard-fought election in which Orb\u00e1n is trailing in most polls<\/a>, the development sparked accusations by Hungary\u2019s leading opposition candidate of a possible \u201cfalse-flag\u201d operation aimed at influencing the ballot.<\/p>\n Orb\u00e1n has yet to address the claims. Instead on Monday, he sought to emphasise their seriousness. \u201cThis pipeline is important, it is our lifeline,\u201d he said in a video posted on social media. \u201cWe conducted an inspection, and I can report to the Hungarian public that the Hungarian defence forces are capable of placing this pipeline under military protection and, if necessary, defending it.\u201d<\/p>\n Earlier he and several government officials had sought to imply that Ukraine<\/a> was involved in the incident \u2013 a charge roundly rejected by Kyiv, which said it had most likely been a \u201cRussian false-flag operation as part of Moscow\u2019s heavy interference in Hungarian elections\u201d.<\/p>\n Orb\u00e1n, who since taking power in 2010 has turned Hungary<\/a> into what he calls an \u201cilliberal democracy\u201d, is also the EU\u2019s most Moscow-friendly leader and has blocked aid packages for Ukraine.<\/p>\n