Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has called an urgent gathering of the National Defence Council following the discovery of explosives near a pipeline for Russian gas delivery to Hungary.
The finding in a border region of adjacent Serbia occurs as Orban's party significantly lags in opinion surveys before important elections next Sunday.
Leader of the opposition Peter Magyar charged him with "panic-mongering" orchestrated by "Russian advisers," shortly after security experts alerted about a potential "false flag" operation that may be attributed to Ukraine.
Orban, a supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin, has opposed EU demands to stop importing Russian energy since the extensive invasion of Ukraine.
Hungarian security experts have recently suggested the likelihood of a fabricated operation, occurring in either Hungary or Serbia, aimed at generating sufficient support for Orban to assist his Fidesz party in winning the election - or to provide Orban with a justification to announce an emergency and delay or cancel the election.
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Serbian President Alexander Vucic, a close associate of Orban, alerted the Hungarian leader about the finding on Sunday morning.
The Serbian army discovered two rucksacks packed with explosives and detonators close to the village of Tresnjevac in the Kanjiza area, roughly 20km (12 miles) from where the TurkStream pipeline enters Hungary.
" Our teams discovered an explosive with immense power," Vucic stated in an Instagram post. "I informed PM Orban that we would provide him with updates regarding the investigation."
Hungary relies on the TurkStream pipeline for five to eight billion cubic metres of Russian gas annually, a resource that is also crucial for Slovakia.
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Balint Pasztor, head of the Vojvodina Hungarian Association and a notable Orban supporter, shared on Facebook: "Should the inquiry reveal we weren't the main target, but rather Hungary's supply routes, it further clarifies: the terrorist act was orchestrated to topple Viktor Orban."
Fidesz has established animosity towards Ukraine as a key element of its electoral strategy.
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During election rallies, Orban has informed his supporters that the low costs of heating and fuel in Hungary are solely due to the availability of inexpensive Russian oil and gas, which are transported to Hungary via pipeline—oil through Ukraine and gas through the Balkans.