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Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha has accused Hungarian authorities of taking hostage seven employees of Ukraine’s state savings bank, Oschadbank.<\/p>\n
Writing on X, Sybiha said: “Today in Budapest, Hungarian authorities took seven Ukrainian citizens hostage. The reasons are still unknown, as well as their current well-being.”<\/p>\n
The employees were in two cars carrying $80m (\u00a360m) worth of cash between Austria and Ukraine. The authorities had sent a note demanding the employees’ return, Sybiha said.<\/p>\n
In a statement, Oschadbank said the employees “were unjustifiably detained in Hungary” and that GPS data showed their vehicles in Budapest. The BBC has contacted the Hungarian government for comment.<\/p>\n
“The amount of valuables in the stolen cars amounted to 40 million US dollars, 35 million euros, 9 kg of gold,” the Oschadbank statement continues.<\/p>\n
“Oschadbank demands the immediate release of its employees and property and their return to Ukraine.”<\/p>\n
Hungary maintains close ties with Russia, and has consistently opposed military aid for Ukraine.<\/p>\n
Earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky criticised Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orb\u00e1n for blocking a European aid package for Kyiv.<\/p>\n