Kiev. This Friday, the authorities of Hungary expelled seven Ukrainian citizens, who were workers of a state bank. These individuals were carrying cash and gold to Ukraine, and the Ukrainian government has accused them of being «kidnappers» of «hostages», amid rising tensions between the two countries. Seven individuals were arrested for involvement in money laundering and have already been deported from the country, according to the site Telex.hu. The Ukrainian Foreign Minister, Andriy Sibiga, accused the Hungarian authorities of having detained seven employees of the state bank Oschadbank, calling this act «state terrorism and extortion». This Friday, the National Police of Ukraine reported that it has initiated judicial proceedings for the crime of kidnapping Ukrainian citizens and vehicles in Hungary, and has requested the assistance of the Hungarian authorities and Europol to clarify the matter. Seven Ukrainian citizens were travelling to Ukraine from Austria in two cars, carrying sums of money: 40 million dollars, 35 million euros, and 9 kilos of gold. According to the minister, this activity is part of the relations between banking entities. The bank states that everything was declared in accordance with the legislation and in line with what was agreed with Raiffeisenbank of Austria. The National Tax and Customs Administration of Hungary (NAV) reported that the transport was supervised by a former general of the Ukrainian Defence Service, accompanied by individuals with military experience. The agency claims that similar shipments have taken place this year, transporting a total of 900 million dollars, 420 million euros, and 146 kilograms of gold to Ukraine. However, the Hungarian Foreign Minister, Péter Szijjártó, requested his Ukrainian counterpart to provide «explanations.»
Hungary expels the seven Ukrainians whom Kiev accused of «kidnapping».
