The Kremlin’s missionary: A former aide shares the secrets of the Russian Orthodox Church in Hungary

Grigory Alfeyev, better known as Metropolitan Hilarion, is the former head of the Russian Orthodox Church’s Department for External Church Relations. In 2022, Hilarion was sent to Hungary, where he acted as Moscow’s go-between with the office of Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. Hilarion’s former aide, Georgy Suzuki, told The Insider that he personally took part in such meetings. Rather than ministering to local Orthodox believers, Suzuki says, the Kremlin’s emissary spent his time courting billionaires, sexually harassing his subordinates, and putting Church funds to personal use.

• 1.“They moved me into Hilarion’s apartment, and then the sexual harassment began”
• 2.“Hilarion played a key role in keeping Patriarch Kirill off the sanctions list”
• 3.“They gave me a suitcase full of money”
• 4.“He kept telling me there was no way I could ever leave him”

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“They moved me into Hilarion’s apartment, and then the sexual harassment began”

Georgy Suzuki, aide

I met Metropolitan Hilarion more than five years ago, when he visited Japan. I was born and raised in Japan, in a Christian family. I had always wanted to become an Orthodox clergyman, but there are few opportunities for that in our country. So a few years ago, I wrote a letter to the Department for External Church Relations of the Russian Orthodox Church under the Moscow Patriarchate, which was headed by Metropolitan Hilarion. I wanted to become a monk and learn about monastic life. Hilarion replied personally, inviting me to come to Russia. But then the COVID pandemic began, followed by the war in Ukraine, and I had no chance to travel.

In the summer of 2022, Hilarion was suddenly dismissed from his post in Moscow and appointed Metropolitan of Budapest and Hungary. I decided to support him — I sent a letter expressing sympathy and offered to come to Hungary to assist him. It was meant as a polite gesture; I didn’t expect him to agree. But to my surprise, the Metropolitan accepted my offer. I was taken aback but decided to go nonetheless.

Georgy Suzuki and Metropolitan Hilarion. Photo from Suzuki’s personal archive

I arrived in Budapest in October. The first few days made a strong impression on me. I was given a separate room to stay in. Later, Hilarion suggested we take a walk around the city. I expected him to wear his cassock, but he was dressed in ordinary clothes — a jacket and trousers. During the walk, he took off his jacket and handed it to me to carry. That was my first cultural shock. In Japan, even the heads of major corporations would never treat subordinates that way. Before long, I was moved out of my separate room and into his apartment. that’s when the sexual harassment began.

“Hilarion played a key role in keeping Patriarch Kirill off the sanctions list”

Before leaving Japan, I believed Hilarion was a deeply religious man — a theologian with vast knowledge, someone who wrote books and took part in film projects. But that turned out to be an illusion. After living under the same roof with him for a year and a half, I can say that he uses faith as a way to make money. For him, the Church is a business.

For instance, he had no clear stance on the war in Ukraine. He said whatever was convenient at a given moment. When talking to Europeans, he took an anti-war position.

In my view, as head of the Church, he should have cared for his congregation at the Cathedral of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Budapest. In reality, he barely interacted with them. He would arrive five minutes before the service and leave almost immediately after the sermon.

As head of the Church, Hilarion should have cared for his parishioners, but in reality, he had almost no contact with them

What he did do, however, was meet with the Russian ambassador to Hungary every month in person. His aide, Vyacheslav Li, met with embassy staff weekly. All these contacts were informal and took place either at the Russian embassy or in restaurants. Sometimes embassy employees visited the Metropolitan’s apartment.

Several times I personally witnessed meetings between Hilarion and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. But more often — about once a month — he met unofficially with Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjén. Hilarion and Semjén were close enough to invite each other into their homes. I once served tea when the Deputy Prime Minister and his wife came to visit the Metropolitan. His wife liked the traditional Japanese sweets I had made so much that she even asked me for the recipe.

Deputy Prime Minister of Hungary Zsolt Semjén and Metropolitan Hilarion. Photo from Georgy Suzuki’s personal archive

All these meetings were held one-on-one. But from time to time, Hilarion would tell me and his other aides what he discussed with Hungarian officials. For instance, there were talks about how Hungary could assist Russian businessmen and oligarchs by granting them residence permits in exchange for certain investments — or by lobbying to lift sanctions. The sums involved were in the millions of euros. Hilarion also played a major role in ensuring that Patriarch Kirill was not placed under sanctions. Even in the news, one can see how Hungary repeatedly blocked his inclusion on the sanctions list.

Hilarion effectively served as a bridge between the Russian and Hungarian authorities. All of this was meant to benefit both the Hungarians and Hilarion himself.

The Metropolitan enjoyed many privileges from both sides. For example, he had a car with diplomatic plates, even though he had no official connection to the Russian embassy. He simply didn’t want to sit in traffic. And when he traveled abroad, he used the government terminal. Moreover, he obtained Hungarian citizenship remarkably quickly — in just a few months.

“They gave me a suitcase full of money”

In addition to that, Metropolitan Hilarion regularly met with Russian businessmen and oligarchs. Officially, the purpose of these meetings was always the same — to ask them to fund certain church needs. In reality, the money went toward Hilarion’s own luxurious lifestyle, which was far from monastic. He owned very expensive cars, houses, and possessions. He dined with businessmen in upscale restaurants, telling them the Church was going through hard times and needed their support. Naturally, the businessmen always paid for dinner.

Metropolitan Hilarion in Dubai. Photo from Georgy Suzuki’s personal archive

Several times he met with Russian businessmen in Dubai, flying there business class on Emirates. I once accompanied him on such a trip. On that occasion, he received a large sum of cash — though I don’t know exactly how much. Hilarion divided the money among his aides so they could carry it in their luggage, and then flew back to Hungary. I was also given a suitcase with money, but I don’t know how much was inside — I never looked. Funds were also transferred to Hilarion’s organizations in Russia, such as the Grigory the Theologian Foundation and Poznanie.

Hilarion regularly received large sums of money from [Russian billionaire] Dmitry Pumpyansky. On one occasion, at a businessman’s birthday party in Azerbaijan, Hilarion met entrepreneur Valery Kogan [the former co-owner of Moscow’s Domodedovo Airport].

Kogan invited Hilarion and all of us to his home in Israel. We flew there directly from Baku. In Israel, Hilarion tried to establish close ties with Kogan’s family — he spent time with Kogan’s wife and granddaughter, hoping to make himself useful. He thought Kogan would pay him. They spent seven days together, but in the end, the Metropolitan left empty-handed. Hilarion was very upset that he had wasted so much time with them for nothing.

To his sponsors, Hilarion claimed he wanted to build a monastery in Hungary where he would live with his aides and monks. In reality, he bought himself a huge house — practically a palace — just outside Budapest.

Part of the money went toward salaries for his aides, whom he had brought from Russia. For instance, after I had already left, he offered me lifelong financial support in exchange for my silence. But I refused.

“He kept telling me there was no way I could ever leave him”

All that time, I was under constant emotional pressure from Hilarion. He repeatedly told me there was no way I could ever leave him — and if I tried, he would find me and use all his connections. He even mentioned a certain FSB general.

In September 2023, we were in Sardinia, Italy — sailing on the yacht of yet another oligarch. During lunch, the oligarch said I was a nice young man and that he had three daughters. It would be wonderful, he said, if I married one of them. Hilarion replied that it was impossible because I was going to become a monk and would stay with him. Later, Hilarion took me to the cabin and began threatening me, saying I shouldn’t even think about leaving. He warned that if I tried to escape, he would ruin my life in Japan or make sure something happened to me before I ever got home. At that moment, I realized that as soon as an opportunity arose, I would have to leave — no matter what.

Metropolitan Hilarion on a “working trip” to Sardinia. Photo from Georgy Suzuki’s personal archive

That chance came only four months later. In January 2024, Hilarion was spending all his time in his “palace” — about an hour’s drive from Budapest. I had an appointment with a doctor in the city center, which meant I had to go there for a few days. Hilarion wasn’t feeling well himself, so he let me travel alone. His other aide, who was supposed to keep an eye on me, had gone on vacation.

So I was on my own. Without wasting time, I bought a ticket, booked a hotel for one night, and secretly moved my belongings there. Early in the morning, around five, I took a taxi to the airport. My flight was at seven, and I couldn’t calm down until the very last minute. When I was on a layover in Istanbul, Hilarion started to get suspicious. He sent one of his aides to check where I was and why I wasn’t responding. The aide brought me some food and tried to call. I texted him that I wasn’t feeling well, that I was asleep, and asked him to leave the food by the door. When I landed in Japan, they had already discovered that both I and my things were gone. Hilarion called me many times, but I didn’t answer. Once I was home in Japan, I filed a report accusing Hilarion of sexual harassment.

In Japan, I filed a report accusing Hilarion of harassment

Hilarion is now demanding that I withdraw my accusations. He himself managed to have a criminal case opened against me and put me on a wanted list — accusing me of stealing an expensive watch from him. But the truth is, he had given it to me for safekeeping. When I was planning my escape, I decided to take the watch with me as a kind of guarantee in case something went wrong. As soon as I landed in Japan, I returned the watch to Hilarion through a lawyer.

He is now offering to drop his case if I declare that my allegations of sexual harassment were false and defamatory, and if I shut down my YouTube channel.

Meanwhile, the case against Hilarion has been stalled for a year — supposedly because no one has been able to determine his whereabouts or serve him a summons. He himself has never appeared in court.

After my first interview, he was transferred from Hungary to the Czech Republic — assigned to serve at the Church of Saints Peter and Paul in Karlovy Vary. As far as I know, he shows up there only for Sunday services, and not every week, while continuing to live in his palace outside Budapest.