Hungary returns gold and cash seized from Ukrainian state bank Oschadbank
Hungary has returned the gold and cash belonging to Oschadbank that were seized in March, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on social media.
Seven Oschadbank couriers were detained on March 5 while transporting cash and gold through Hungary.
Hungarian authorities said the funds could belong to the “Ukrainian military mafia.” The sum in question was $40 million, 35 million euros, and nine kilograms (about 20 pounds) of gold.
Ukraine called the incident a “hostage-taking” and urged its citizens not to travel to Hungary. The couriers were released the following day.
Zelensky thanked Budapest for what he called a constructive and civilized step.
In February, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Volodymyr Zelensky had a serious falling-out when a dispute erupted over the disruption of Russian oil deliveries via the Druzhba pipeline, which runs through Ukrainian territory. On April 12, Orban lost the election. The winner, Peter Magyar, made clear he had no intention of continuing the confrontation with Kyiv, and within days oil deliveries via the Druzhba pipeline resumed.
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