Hungarian human rights organizations have expressed serious concern over the participation of Darya Boyarskaya — a former interpreter for Vladimir Putin — in the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA) mission to observe the Hungarian parliamentary elections scheduled for 12 April 2026. Critics fear that her close ties to the Kremlin could undermine the mission’s credibility and create a “chilling effect” on Hungarian civil society.
Darya Boyarskaya, a Russian national, worked for many years at Russia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and served as an interpreter at high-level negotiations, including Putin’s meeting with Donald Trump at the 2019 G20 summit in Osaka. She currently holds the position of Senior Adviser at the OSCE PA and is coordinating the election observation mission in Hungary from the organisation’s Vienna office.
The Hungarian Helsinki Committee sent an official letter to OSCE leadership demanding that Boyarskaya be immediately removed from the mission. According to the Committee’s co-chair Márta Pardavi, the presence of a Russian national with such connections may deter Hungarian activists, journalists, and opposition representatives from freely sharing information with international observers, due to fears of data leaking to Moscow. Human rights defenders stress that this is particularly critical given that the elections may prove to be the most serious test for Prime Minister Viktor Orbán in his 16 years in power.
The scandal intensified after it emerged that Boyarskaya has been under Polish sanctions since 2022 on national security grounds. Nevertheless, OSCE PA Secretary General Roberto Montella defended her appointment, stating that it was his personal decision and that he has full confidence in the staff member.
The criticism of the appointment was echoed by politicians from other EU countries. Estonian Foreign Minister Margus Tsahkna called the involvement of a former Russian MFA official in the mission unacceptable and urged the OSCE to reconsider the composition of the group. A number of MEPs also voiced similar demands.
The OSCE has so far not officially commented on the possibility of removing Boyarskaya. The OSCE PA mission, together with ODIHR/OSCE (the Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights), is continuing its preparations for the observation: key leaders have already arrived in Budapest, including Special Co-ordinator Arghis Khandanyan and Head of Delegation Rupa Haq.
The situation surrounding Darya Boyarskaya has become yet another blow to the OSCE’s reputation, which has already faced repeated accusations of insufficient firmness toward authoritarian tendencies in certain member states. Human rights defenders warn that if the organisation fails to respond, trust in its election observation missions could be seriously undermined.