Hungary's Viktor Orban alleges plot to blow up gas pipeline ahead of election

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has convened an emergency meeting of the National Defence Council after explosives were found near a pipeline that transports Russian gas to Hungary.

The discovery in a border area of neighbouring Serbia comes as Orban’s party is badly trailing in opinion polls ahead of crucial elections next Sunday.

Opposition leader Peter Magyar accused him of “panic-mongering” orchestrated by “Russian advisers”, days after security experts warned of a possible “false flag” operation that could be blamed on Ukraine.

Orban, an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has resisted EU calls to abandon Russian energy imports since the full-scale invasion of Ukraine.