Bank employees detained and cash seized in Hungary, Ukraine says

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Ukraine's overseas curate accused Hungarian authorities of taking 7 Ukrainian employees of a state-owned slope hostage and illegally seizing a currency shipment that was traveling successful a convoy crossed Hungary.

In a station connected X precocious Thursday, Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha wrote that the well-being of the 7 Ukrainians — employees of the state-owned Oschadbank traveling successful 2 armored cars betwixt Austria and Ukraine — was unknown.

The armored cars were carrying currency arsenic portion of regular services betwixt authorities banks, Sybiha wrote.

In a abstracted statement, Oschadbank wrote that $40 cardinal successful American currency, arsenic good arsenic 35 cardinal euros and 9 kilograms (19.8 pounds) of golden had been apprehended by Hungary.

GPS information showed the vehicles were successful the halfway of Budapest adjacent 1 of Hungary's instrumentality enforcement agencies, but that the determination of the slope employees remained unknown, the slope wrote.

Hungary's Interior Ministry did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.

The incidental further inflamed tensions betwixt Hungary and Ukraine, which are embroiled successful a bitter feud implicit Hungary's entree to Russian lipid done a pipeline that crosses Ukrainian territory.

Oil shipments done the Druzhba pipeline person been interrupted since Jan. 27. Ukraine says a Russian drone onslaught damaged the pipeline's infrastructure, and that repairing it carried risks to technicians and that adjacent if restored, it would stay susceptible to further Russian attacks.

Hungary's government, however, has accused Ukraine of deliberately holding up supplies of Russian crude, and has vowed to instrumentality countermeasures against Kyiv until lipid flows resume.

Hungary, on with neighboring Slovakia, person defied European Union efforts to wean disconnected of Russian fossil fuels, and continued to acquisition them contempt Moscow's penetration of Ukraine.

Without mentioning them directly, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán alluded to the detention of the slope vehicles successful statements to authorities vigor Friday, saying: “We volition halt things that are important to Ukraine passing done Hungary until we get the support of the Ukrainians for lipid shipments.”

Orbán, who has maintained adjacent relations with the Kremlin portion escalating an assertive anti-Ukraine run up of important elections adjacent month, antecedently ceased diesel shipments to Ukraine, vetoed a caller circular of EU sanctions against Russia and blocked a major, 90-billion-euro ($106-billion) indebtedness for Kyiv successful retaliation for the interruption successful lipid shipments.

He's besides deployed subject forces to cardinal vigor infrastructure sites crossed Hungary, accusing Ukraine of plotting disruptions.

On Thursday, Orbán told an economical forum that Hungary would usage “force,” including “political and fiscal tools,” to compel Ukraine to resume lipid shipments.

On his station connected X, the Ukrainian overseas curate took contented with Orbán's comments, writing: “We are talking astir Hungary taking hostages and stealing money.”

“If this is the ‘force’ announced earlier contiguous by Mr. Orban, past this is simply a unit of a transgression gang,” Sybiha wrote. “This is authorities coercion and racketeering.”

Sybiha added that Ukraine would instrumentality the substance up with the EU to clarify Hungary's actions.

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