by Stefan J. Bos, Worthy News Europe Bureau Chief reporting from Budapest
BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – Hungary accused Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy of threatening to kill Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán as frictions between the neighbors intensified Friday, deepening disputes over energy supplies, financial aid and the war in Ukraine.
Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó made the allegation during a protest outside Ukraine’s heavily guarded embassy in Budapest attended by hundreds of demonstrators, many waving Hungarian flags above the crowd.
The protesters said they were opposing what they described as Ukrainian “blackmail, threats and interference” in Hungarian politics ahead of the country’s parliamentary elections scheduled for April 12, 2026.
“The death threat by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy against the Hungarian prime minister shows what they are really like,” Szijjártó told the crowd. “They threaten and blackmail. This is nothing new for us. We already know the Ukrainian mafia and the thugs. Now it has simply been elevated to the presidential level,” he added.
DISPUTE OVER ZELENSKYY COMMENTS
Szijjártó appeared to refer to remarks by Zelenskyy suggesting he could pass private details such as Orbán’s address to Ukrainian soldiers so they could personally express their views about the Hungarian leader.
Zelenskyy spoke amid a dispute with Budapest over Hungary’s refusal to approve 90 billion euros (about $98 billion) in additional European Union financial assistance for Ukraine and Kyiv’s halt of Russian oil transit through the Druzhba (“Friendship”) pipeline supplying Hungary and Slovakia.
Szijjártó also claimed that the family of Hungarian tennis player Panna Udvardy was threatened with kidnapping if she defeated a Ukrainian opponent at a tournament in Turkey.
Szijjártó said Hungary has resisted attempts for four years to draw the country into the war in Ukraine.
‘NOT HUNGARY’S WAR’ POSITION
“What is happening in Ukraine is not our war,” the minister stressed. “We were not attacked, so we do not need to defend ourselves there.”
Szijjártó also pointed to the situation of ethnic Hungarians in Ukraine’s Transcarpathia region.
“It is already heartbreaking to know how many of our Hungarian brothers from Transcarpathia are taken from the streets to the Ukrainian front,” he said.
Many have been killed, disappeared or taken prisoner, he added.
ETHNIC HUNGARIANS KILLED, INJURED
The minister said two Hungarian prisoners of war have since returned home and were visited by Orbán in hospital.
He also accused Ukraine of interfering “more aggressively than ever” in Hungary’s elections.
Szijjártó referred to reports that large quantities of cash and gold had been transported through Hungary.
He said this involved about 900 million U.S. dollars, 420 million euros and 146 kilograms of gold.
CASH AND GOLD TRANSPORT
Hungarian authorities said Friday that seven Ukrainian citizens were detained in Budapest by anti-terror police while allegedly transporting about 72 million euros ($78 million) worth of gold and cash toward Austria.
The Hungarian government demanded an explanation from Ukraine about the origin and destination of the money.
The governing Fidesz party’s faction leader Máté Kocsis also addressed the demonstrators, saying Hungary is facing a decisive election and accusing Ukraine of trying to force a change of government.
ELECTION DISPUTE WITH UKRAINE
Kocsis said Ukraine hopes the opposition led by Péter Magyar and his Tisza Party will win the elections.
“If the Tisza Party wins, Ukraine wins. If Fidesz wins, Hungary wins,” Kocsis said.
An earlier speaker at the rally also claimed Ukrainian leaders wanted Orbán removed from power in the interest of Magyar and the Tisza Party, arguing that such a government would support Ukraine’s membership in the European Union and provide more money and weapons to Kyiv.
The Hungarian government has framed the upcoming election as a choice between “war or peace,” arguing that an opposition government would bring Hungary closer to the war in Ukraine.
The opposition rejects those accusations and says Orbán’s government is using the conflict for domestic political purposes.
Copyright 1999-2026 Worthy News. This article was originally published on Worthy News and was reproduced with permission.
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