Zelenskyy targets talks with Magyar over Ukraine's Oschadbank funds held in Hungary
Volodymyr Zelenskyy (photo: Getty Images)
Ukraine wants to recover funds belonging to its national bank, Oschadbank, that were detained in Hungary. President Zelenskyy is set to discuss that with Péter Magyar, leader of Hungary's Tisza party, which won the parliamentary elections.
"We would like to get the money back. They took our money (referring to Oschadbank funds, – ed.). We will already be talking with Magyar. I think it should be returned. Orbán (Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, – ed.) simply stole this money," Zelenskyy said.
On March 5, Hungarian law enforcement stopped a convoy of Oschadbank vehicles transporting gold and tens of millions of dollars and euros from Vienna to Ukraine. Hungary froze the funds, citing suspicion of money laundering.
During the raid, Hungarian authorities damaged the bank's armored vehicles, and part of the gold bullion reportedly went missing. The Ukrainian side accused Hungarian law enforcement of incompetence and deliberate damage to property.
In addition, The Guardian reported that detained bank employees may have been subjected to forced injections of an unknown substance similar to a "truth serum" in order to extract testimony. One of the victims reportedly suffered a hypertensive crisis and lost consciousness afterward.
The situation prompted a reaction in Brussels. The EU opposed Hungary's actions, stressing that such measures violate the rule of law and threaten the security of cross-border financial operations within the Schengen Area.
The media also reported that Hungarian authorities said the seized funds and gold would only be returned after the completion of an official investigation. Budapest described the seizure of the Oschadbank convoy as a "security measure," denying any political motive behind the operation.
