Venko Filipče, the leader of the Social Democratic Union of Macedonia (SDSM), has claimed that Skopje, Belgrade, and Budapest are intertwined in a complex network of political, media, and business interests. According to Filipče, this network heavily involves Alta Bank, the energy sector, and companies directly linked to the recently ousted Hungarian leader, Viktor Orbán.
In an interview with Nova.rs, Filipče warned that “nothing will remain swept under the rug,” comparing former Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić, and North Macedonian Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski to Russian Matryoshka (babuška) nesting dolls.
“Each subsequent one is smaller than the last. The first one has fallen; now it is the turn of the remaining two,” Filipče asserted.
A Tri-Lateral Political and Financial Network
Filipče argued that North Macedonian Prime Minister Hristijan Mickoski operates as a “mini-Vučić,” utilizing identical rhetoric that divides citizens into “patriots” and “traitors,” while mimicking a skeptical stance toward European Union integration.
The SDSM leader highlighted that since Mickoski’s party, VMRO-DPMNE, took power, North Macedonia has seen an influx of daily “projects” tied to Hungary across the media, energy, railway, telecommunications, and financial sectors. Filipče also pointed out that former North Macedonian Prime Minister Nikola Gruevski, a fugitive from justice for nearly a decade, obtained political asylum in Hungary by escaping through Serbia, allegedly holding passports from both nations.
Allegations of Hungarian Control Over Macedonian Media
When questioned about evidence regarding Hungarian influence in the domestic media landscape, Filipče cited international investigative reports.
“Independent investigative organizations across the region and Europe, specifically OCCRP and BIRN, have clearly exposed the connections of Péter Szécsi and Ágnes Adamik, who control roughly 40% of the media market in North Macedonia. This is a direct pipeline to Orbán,” Filipče stated.
He alleged that individuals from Hungarian national television abruptly acquired TV stations and portals in Slovenia (linked to Janez Janša) and North Macedonia, using falsified marketing campaigns to funnel Hungarian money via Slovenia into local media outlets aligned with VMRO-DPMNE.
The €1 Billion Chinese Loan via Budapest
Filipče emphasized that the political shift in Budapest, led by Hungary’s new Prime Minister Péter Magyar, will directly impact North Macedonia. Magyar recently announced investigations into opaque international contracts involving Chinese loans taken out by the Orbán administration in 2024—the exact same year the Mickoski government secured a matching €1 billion loan from Hungary.
“The money Hungary lent us was originally sourced from the China Development Bank, the Export-Import Bank of China, and the Hungarian branch of the Bank of China,” Filipče explained, citing recent data published by Bloomberg. “They hid the true costs, interest rates, and upfront fees. Over a million euros were transferred for contractual services, and tens of millions went to undisclosed commissions. We demand an immediate domestic investigation into this Chinese capital.”
Serbian Links and Off-Shore Energy Deals
The opposition leader also mapped out connections linking North Macedonian leadership to Serbian ruling structures. He pointed to Dušan Adamović, North Macedonia’s Honorary Consul to Serbia and a high-ranking member of Serbia’s ruling Serbian Progressive Party (SNS).
Filipče claimed Adamović is a close business partner of Mickoski in the energy sector, connected via an offshore entity in Cyprus called Altaria Research Limited, which leads to the Rudnap Group—an energy holding company owned by Serbian businessman Vojin Lazarević. North Macedonia’s current Energy Minister, Sanja Božinovska, previously served as an executive director within the Rudnap Group.
Accusations Against Alta Bank and the Judiciary
Filipče accused VMRO-DPMNE of heavily infiltrating Alta Bank, noting that the institution recently purchased a block of shares from Sašo Mijalkov, the convicted former director of the Administration for Security and Counterintelligence (UBK). The SDSM leader claims the bank acts as a primary channel for financing Orbán’s media apparatus in North Macedonia.
However, Filipče expressed skepticism regarding immediate action from domestic prosecutors:
“Regrettably, we do not expect investigations from the Macedonian prosecution at this time. The judiciary is under the absolute control of Mickoski. The Prime Minister openly threatens the opposition with arrests and gives directives to prosecutors from the parliamentary podium, through the media, and now officially over the phone, as he himself recently admitted.”
Future Plans: The Estonian Model
Should SDSM return to power, Filipče announced plans to introduce a comprehensive civic front backed by a “Zero Tolerance for Crime and Corruption Law,” modeled directly after Estonia’s highly successful post-communist institutional reforms.
Additionally, Filipče promised an immediate liberalization of the media market and a thorough, top-to-bottom audit of all disputed state infrastructure agreements, the Alta Bank transactions, the Hungarian loans, and the controversial telecommunications licenses granted to the Hungarian-linked firm 4iG.
