On March 9, the Hungarian Ambassador to Ukraine, Antal Geiser, was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine, where a strong protest was lodged regarding Hungary’s gross violations of its international legal obligations, in particular the European Convention on Human Rights, the 1963 Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, and the Ukrainian-Hungarian Consular Convention regarding the treatment of illegally detained Ukrainian citizens who were transporting valuable cargo from Vienna to Ukraine in fulfillment of an international contract between Raiffeisen Bank International AG (Austria) and Oschadbank JSC.

The Hungarian side was informed of the position that the use of intimidation and psychological pressure against Ukrainian citizens, as well as the excessive use of force, is unacceptable. The Hungarian ambassador’s attention was also drawn to the fact that, despite the existence of an official request sent through diplomatic channels, Ukrainian consular officials were not granted access to the detainees, which constitutes a gross violation of the aforementioned international legal instruments.

At the same time, information was requested regarding the legislative initiative of the leader of the Fidesz parliamentary faction, specifically the subject matter of the legislative initiative and the objectives of the future law.