Hungary has returned cash and gold belonging to the Ukrainian state-owned Oschadbank that were seized by Hungarian authorities in early March, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Facebook on May 6, calling it an important step in relations with Hungary, according to state news agency MTI.

"The Hungarian side unlawfully detained Ukrainian cash-in-transit officers. We brought our people back earlier, and now both the funds and the valuables are back on Ukrainian territory in full. I am grateful to Hungary for its constructive approach and civilised step," he added.

The Hungarian public was informed about the development from Ukrainian sources, as the outgoing government had not released any press statement about the transaction.

On March 5, six weeks before the Hungarian election, Hungary's counterterrorism unit (TEK) stopped two cash transport vans of Oschadbank near Budapest, detained seven employees, and seized $82mn in cash and gold on its way to Ukraine from Austria as part of a regular transport authorised earlier by Hungarian authorities.

The Orban government immediately framed the shipment as illegal and linked it to the Ukrainian "war mafia", with some making the incredulous assumption that Tisza was the main target of the transit.

Investigative journalist Szabolcs Panyi, who covered the story from the start, said on Facebook that the return of the assets is a clear admission that the entire story and the campaign built around it were completely fake.

Days after the raid, Panyi, citing people familiar with the situation, said it was a politically motivated intelligence operation, personally overseen by senior intelligence officials, with the aim of provoking a conflict with Ukraine ahead of the April 12 elections. Hungary’s veteran leader, involved in a fierce and intense campaign, had put all his cards on portraying Ukraine as the biggest threat to Hungary and made this the focus of his campaign.

According to Panyi, Hungarian services had been monitoring the Ukrainian cash transports since January. The original intention was allegedly to find weapons and build a narrative around terrorism or arms smuggling, but this plan failed. The government then asked the National Tax and Customs Administration to retroactively legitimise the operation on suspicion of money laundering, which reportedly caused internal tensions.

Four days after the incident, the Fidesz majority approved a bill to withhold seized Ukrainian assets for up to 60 days.

Analysts at the time said that Fidesz was trying to heighten war fears and escalate tensions with Ukraine to consolidate its support base, and was attempting to portray opposition leader Peter Magyar as Zelenskiy’s man.

In his latest social media post, Panyi added that those behind the raid considered the operation successful, as Zelenskiy later made a controversial statement that could be portrayed as a threat against Viktor Orban. 

At a press conference, he said, referring to Viktor Orban, that Ukraine could give "that person’s address to its armed forces and let them speak to him in their own language". The comment was widely interpreted as a veiled death threat against the Hungarian leader and provided talking points to the ruling party’s campaign. Opposition leader Peter Magyar also strongly condemned Zelenskiy’s comments.

The dispute unfolded during a period of heightened tensions, with Hungary accusing Ukraine of blackmail over the delay in reopening the Druzhba pipeline, while continuing to block an EU agreement on a €90bn loan to Kyiv in retaliation.

Hungarian business online  VG.hu, which released photos of the transfer based on a social media post of Oschadbank,  cited Yuriy Katson, head of the bank’s board, who criticised the initial seizure, saying the two-month detention of the assets in Hungary had violated several international norms and rules governing inter-state cooperation. He acknowledged Hungary’s "constructive approach" in resolving the matter and completing the handover in line with European practices.

The shipment was subjected to security checks, including inspections with police dogs. The handover was attended by Ukraine’s ambassador to Hungary Shandor Fedir (Sandor Fegyir), an ethnic Hungarian, and legal representatives of the Oschadbank and NAV officials.