Russia hands over eleven Ukrainian POWs to Hungary - MFA calls for information

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine today invited the Chargé d'Affaires of Hungary and handed him an appeal demanding detailed information about the Ukrainian POWs transferred by Russia to Budapest.

The relevant statement was made by Foreign Ministry spokesman Oleg Nikolenko on Facebook, Ukrinform reports.

Nikolenko said that the release of Ukrainian POWs is always good news. At the same time, the Foreign Ministry spokesman noted that the Ukrainian government was not informed about the relevant negotiations between the Hungarian and Russian sides, and that the Ukrainian side learned that Russia had handed over eleven Ukrainians of Hungarian origin to Budapest from public statements by the Hungarian Deputy Prime Minister.

"Today, the Chargé d'Affaires of Hungary was invited to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine for a substantive conversation. The Ukrainian side passed on a request to provide detailed information about our citizens and to immediately provide access to them for the Ukrainian consul to get acquainted with their health condition and provide them with consular assistance," said Nikolenko.

He added that during the meeting, the Ukrainian side emphasized the need to coordinate cooperation on such sensitive issues as the release of prisoners of war.

As reported, Deputy Prime Minister of Hungary Zsolt Semjén confirmed to the Hungarian media the information about the transfer of 11 prisoners of war, Transcarpathian Hungarians, from Russia to Hungary, as previously stated by the Russian Orthodox Church.