That vow, in turn, opens another can of worms. The Ukrainian public (and Zelenskyy himself) opposes renewing Russian oil flows that would boost the Kremlin’s finances. Magyar, meanwhile, says that Hungary will rely on Russian oil and gas “for some time” to come.
The Brussels bonanza
Another disappointment for Kyiv could be a lack of support from Budapest for fast-track Ukrainian accession to the EU. Magyar has previously said he doesn’t support the idea, given that the rules say all countries need to meet the bloc’s accession criteria before being invited to join. Ukraine, meanwhile, sees fast-track accession as a security guarantee it has earned through its wartime sacrifices, and wants Brussels to set a concrete date.
At a Monday press conference Magyar said the topic of Ukraine’s accelerated EU accession was still academic, as “the country is still at war,” but that if it became a live issue he would put the decision to a referendum.
As for easy wins, Ukraine might look to recover the €35 million in cash and 9 kilograms of gold Hungarian authorities seized in March from a van belonging to Ukraine’s state-owned Oshchadbank as it was transiting the country. Budapest said it had foiled a money laundering operation, a claim Kyiv denied.
“We hope that the recent political events in Hungary will allow us to return the issue of our illegally detained funds,” said Yurii Katsion, Oshchadbank board chairman.
Magyar has yet to comment on the seizure.