Hungary detains Ukrainians carrying $82 million in cash and gold; Kyiv calls it a hostage-taking
NBC News • • world
Key Points:
- Hungarian authorities detained seven Ukrainian citizens, including a former intelligence officer, and seized two armored cars carrying large sums of cash on suspicion of money laundering; the detainees were employees of Ukraine's state-owned Oschadbank transporting money between Austria and Ukraine.
- Ukraine condemned the detentions and seizures as illegal and accused Hungary of "state terrorism and racketeering," highlighting that the cash, euros, and gold were part of regular state bank transactions.
- The incident has intensified tensions between Hungary and Ukraine amid a dispute over Russian oil shipments through a pipeline crossing Ukrainian territory, with Hungary accusing Ukraine of deliberately blocking supplies and Ukraine blaming Russian attacks.
- Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, who has close Kremlin ties and is facing elections, has escalated anti
