Ukraine published a document rejecting the proposed date of the Hungarian delegation in Kyiv. The dispute deepens with Péter Szijjártó’s accusation that Zelenskyj is lying.
Ukrainian media published a document that the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent to the Hungarian Embassy in Kyiv on March 10. It states that the proposed date of the Hungarian delegation’s visit to Kyiv is unacceptable to the Ukrainian side. Budapest therefore proposed to agree on a new date through diplomatic channels. The British station BBC reported about it on its website on Thursday, writes TASR.
- The Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs rejected the proposed March date of the Hungarian visit.
- Kyiv proposed to Budapest to agree on a new suitable date exclusively through diplomatic channels.
- Volodymyr Zelenskyy claims that he only knew about the Hungarian delegation as a private one.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy declared on Wednesday evening that he did not know about the arrival of the Hungarian delegation. According to his words, the Ukrainian Ministry of Foreign Affairs informed him that a group of people from Hungary arrived in Ukraine, whose trip was marked as private.
Diplomatic disputes over visitation
Ukrainian Foreign Ministry spokesman Heorhiy Tychy previously said that a group of Hungarian citizens entered the territory of Ukraine under normal visa-free travel rules for citizens of Schengen countries.
The publication of the document issued by the Ukrainian Department of Diplomacy was a response to the statement of Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó, who accused President Zelensky of lying after Kyiv refused to recognize the visit of the Hungarian delegation as official.
Inspection of the Druzhba pipeline
Szijjártó said on Facebook that the Ukrainian side was informed in advance about the delegation’s trip through a diplomatic note. According to him, the Hungarian government announced that a delegation led by Deputy Minister of Energy Gábor Czepek would visit Ukraine to check the condition of the Druzhba pipeline and also requested a meeting with the Ukrainian Minister of Energy.
Hungary accuses Ukraine of sabotaging the resumption of operation of the Druzhba pipeline. Its operation was suspended at the end of January after an alleged Russian attack. The pipeline is used to transport Russian oil to Hungary and Slovakia.
