A diplomatic dispute between Hungary and Ukraine has intensified after Hungarian authorities seized armoured bank vehicles carrying large quantities of cash and gold reportedly linked to a Ukrainian state bank.
Officials in Hungary said the convoy was transporting $40 million and 35 million Euro in cash along with about 9 kilograms of gold when it was stopped by customs authorities. Seven Ukrainian citizens travelling with the vehicles were detained.
Hungary's National Tax and Customs Administration said it had opened a money-laundering investigation into the shipment. Authorities also claimed that one of the detainees was a former general from Ukraine's intelligence services, raising further suspicions about the origins of the funds.
However, Ukraine rejected the accusations. Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha accused Budapest of "taking hostages and stealing money." Ukraine's state savings bank, Oschadbank, said the convoy was on a routine transfer of cash and gold between Austria and Ukraine, carried out by road due to restrictions on air travel during the war.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's political director, Balazs Orban, questioned the legitimacy of the shipment. In a post on social media, he said armoured vehicles carrying large quantities of cash and gold across Hungary was not typical of normal financial transactions.
The incident comes amid wider tensions between the two countries over energy supplies and Hungary's opposition to additional European Union support for Ukraine. Recently, Orban blocked new EU sanctions against Russia and vetoed a proposed 90 billion Euro loan package for Ukraine.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy also sparked controversy after warning that one EU leader should not obstruct the financial package, remarks that were widely interpreted in Hungary as directed at Orban.
Hungarian officials later said the detained Ukrainians would be expelled from the country, though it remains unclear what will happen to the seized money and gold.
from NDTV News- Special https://ift.tt/Ax7yhFG
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