BUDAPEST
\nUkrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has accused Hungarian authorities of taking hostage seven employees of Ukraine\u2019s state savings bank, Oschadbank. Writing on X, Sybiha said: \u201cToday in Budapest, Hungarian authorities took seven Ukrainian citizens hostage. The reasons are still unknown, as well as their current well-being.\u201d
\nThe employees were in two cars carrying $80m (\u00a360m) worth of cash between Austria and Ukraine. The authorities had sent a note demanding the employees\u2019 return, Sybiha said. In a statement, Oschadbank said the employees \u201cwere unjustifiably detained in Hungary\u201d and that GPS data showed their vehicles in Budapest.
\nThe BBC has contacted the Hungarian government for comment \u201cThe amount of valuables in the stolen cars amounted to 40 million US dollars, 35 million euros, 9 kg of gold,\u201d the Oschadbank statement continues. \u201cOschadbank demands the immediate release of its employees and property and their return to Ukraine. \u201cHungary maintains close ties with Russia, and has consistently opposed military aid for Ukraine.
\nSybiha accused Hungary of \u201cstate terrorism and racketeering\u201d.\u201dWe are talking about Hungary taking hostages and stealing money,\u201d Sybiha added on X. Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky criticised Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban for blocking a European aid package for Kyiv. Orban has accused Kyiv of imposing an \u201coil blockade\u201d on Hungary by deliberately delaying the reopening of the Druzhba pipeline.
\nOrban, who is trailing in opinion polls ahead of pivotal elections next month, has said Budapest will use \u201cpolitical and financial tools\u201d to force Ukraine to reopen the pipeline carrying Russian oil to Hungarian refineries. Ukraine says the pipeline was damaged by Russian strikes last month and its repair crews have been injured by further attacks.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
BUDAPEST Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has accused Hungarian authorities of taking hostage seven employees of Ukraine\u2019s state savings bank, Oschadbank. Writing on X, Sybiha said: \u201cToday in Budapest, Hungarian authorities took seven Ukrainian citizens hostage. The reasons are still unknown, as well as their current well-being.\u201d The employees were in two cars carrying $80m […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":535269,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-535246","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n