Member of Hungarian delegation refused to travel to Ukraine for fear of being mobilised
Only four of the five members of a Hungarian mission that arrived in Ukraine to inspect the condition of the Druzhba oil pipeline actually came, as one refused to make the trip.
Source: European Pravda, citing Hungarian online newspaper 24.hu
Details: One member of the delegation pulled out at the last minute over fears of legal consequences and mobilisation into the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
The man was born in Zakarpattia Oblast and, in addition to Hungarian citizenship, still holds a Ukrainian passport. He feared that given the tense relations between the two countries, the Ukrainian authorities would not make exceptions for him as a member of a foreign state mission. He assumed that he could be detained and reminded of his civic duty to defend his homeland, so he decided to play it safe and did not go.
The delegation was formed according to a decision made by Hungary's government on 4 March. It was to include Hungarian Deputy Energy Minister Gábor Cepek, two civil servants experienced in international relations, and two specialist employees from the oil company MOL. The names of the delegates, other than the head, have not been disclosed.
Background:
- The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry stated that a Hungarian "monitoring group" entered Ukraine on the morning of 11 March, but it has no official status and no official meetings are scheduled. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy commented that he did not know what the Hungarian delegation was doing in Ukraine.
- Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó then accused Zelenskyy of lying and posted a Hungarian diplomatic note on social media which suggested that Budapest had requested a meeting between Czepek and Ukraine's Energy Minister Denys Shmyhal.
- However, a note from Ukraine's Foreign Ministry obtained by European Pravda indicates that the Hungarian side had not coordinated its delegation's visit to the Druzhba oil pipeline with Ukraine and was receiving official objections to the proposed format from Kyiv.
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