Ukraine accused Hungary on Friday of detaining seven employees of its state owned Oschadbank who were transporting about $82 million in cash and gold through Hungarian territory, according to Reuters.
Ukrainian officials said the employees were traveling from Austria to Ukraine when Hungarian authorities allegedly seized the convoy.
Ukraine accused Hungary of "taking hostage" seven employees of its state savings bank who were carrying around $82 million in cash and gold, as Budapest vowed to stop transit shipments to the war-torn country amid an oil dispute.https://t.co/BoUcUfGtcJ
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Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha called the incident “state terrorism and racketeering,” claiming Hungary effectively took hostages and confiscated the funds. Kyiv said the shipment included $40 million, €35 million, and 9 kilograms of gold. Oschadbank said the transfer complied with international transport and customs rules.
The dispute comes amid rising tensions between the two countries over disruptions to the Druzhba oil pipeline, which supplies Russian crude to Hungary and Slovakia.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has accused Ukraine of delaying repairs to the pipeline and has threatened to halt key transit shipments to Ukraine until oil flows resume, Reuters reported.
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