Poroshenko's party says he received $1 million from Hungarian Finance Ministry as interest payments

Ukraine's former President Petro Poroshenko received $1 million from Hungary due to interest earned on foreign investments, Poroshenko's party, European Solidarity, said in a statement on Dec. 21.

Reports emerged earlier on Dec. 21 that Poroshenko had declared assets amounting to $1 million from the Hungarian Finance Ministry between October and November 2023. Poroshenko had attempted to visit Hungary on Dec. 1 but was stopped at Ukraine's border.  

Poroshenko said that border guards prevented him from leaving the country even though he had previously received official permission. The Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) said it had requested that his permission be canceled due to a planned meeting with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

According to the SBU, Russian intelligence services planned to leverage the meeting for propaganda purposes. Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Budapest has repeatedly obstructed EU support for Kyiv while maintaining ties with Moscow.

Ukraine's public asset declaration website shows that Poroshenko declared Hr 517,173 ($13,755) on Oct. 23. The income was labeled as "interest" and its source was listed as the Hungarian Finance Ministry.  

One month later, on Nov. 24, Poroshenko similarly declared Hr 1,036,940 ($27,579). Another 36,067,500 ($959,265) was declared the same day as "bond redemption," with the Hungarian Finance Ministry again as the source.

European Solidarity said that the interest earned by foreign investments went to funding the Ukrainian Armed Forces, and "independent professional advisers" are responsible for making foreign investment decisions.

"Poroshenko will continue to look for and find sources of funding for programs to strengthen the country's defense capabilities, and securities will remain one of the tools for obtaining funds for the Armed Forces in this program," European Solidarity said in the statement.

The party also said that Poroshenko pays income taxes and military duty on both Ukrainian and foreign securities, contributing to the Ukrainian state treasury.

Orban commented on Poroshenko's attempted visit to Hungary during a press conference on Dec. 21.

Though it was "reasonable" that there were travel restrictions during wartime, Orban claimed he questioned Ukraine's ambitions for EU membership if "the meeting of a citizen of Ukraine with the Prime Minister of Hungary poses a threat to national security."

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The Kyiv IndependentElsa Court