Special Cargo from Ukraine

Secret Transport Through Austria Without Inspections

A secret transport carrying Ukrainian President Zelenskyy through Austria to the World Economic Forum in Davos—without any inspection—is causing a stir.(Bild: Krone KREATIV/AFP)

Following the gold scandal between Kyiv and Vienna, there’s another uproar over secret shipments through Austria! 200 kilograms of “special cargo” from the Ukrainian State Security Service were waved through without customs or security checks. The Krone has the details.

Just this past spring, an inquiry by the Freedom Party to Finance Minister Markus Marterbauer revealed some astonishing facts. The staggering figures on discreet banking transactions under the Giebelkreuz were enough to make one’s head spin. According to the findings, from 2022 through this year, there were 1,011 (!) export declarations for cash shipments from Vienna via Budapest to the war zone in Kyiv. The total value: 11.85 billion euros and an additional 7.7 billion U.S. dollars.

“20-Billion-Treasure” Hauled Through Austria
The treasure, transported in armored vehicles from Austria’s Raiffeisen Bank International, was hauled more than 1,300 kilometers into the war zone. Added to this are 19 trips carrying gold bars worth more than 130 million in U.S. dollars and euros. This adds up to the incredible total of 20 billion!

It all came to light because, at the height of the Hungarian election campaign, then-Prime Minister Viktor Orbán had such an armored truck carrying gold and cash stopped. Just like in an action movie, the counterterrorism unit struck at a highway gas station. The newly elected government then allowed the Austro-Transporter to continue on its way.

The mountain of cash and gold bars seized at the time, destined for Kyiv(Bild: Magyarország Kormánya)

It was all about the World Economic Forum with Trump and Zelenskyy
Now there’s a new uproar over “Operation Secret Transports” in Austria! The background is a so-called verbal note from the Foreign Ministry—now in the possession of the FPÖ—as part of diplomatic correspondence between states. In it, in connection with the participation of a Ukrainian delegation at the World Economic Forum in Davos that took place in January, a request is made for a convoy to transit through our country. In Switzerland, the political elite was also represented, including U.S. President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

An Inconspicuous VW Bus Belonging to the Ukrainian Secret Service
Specifically, this concerns a VW bus belonging to the Ukrainian intelligence service carrying a mysterious, undeclared “special cargo.” The cargo, weighing a total of 200 kilograms, was reportedly waved through without customs clearance or security screening.

Austria is not a lawless transit corridor for foreign intelligence services. We are still a neutral state.

FPÖ-Generalsekretär Christian Hafenecker

Bild: APA/GEORG HOCHMUTH

For the FPÖ, this explosive case is far from resolved, even after the Foreign Ministry confirmed the verbal note in a response to a parliamentary inquiry. “This means the matter is not just some rumor, but an incident of which the Austrian authorities demonstrably had knowledge. What was in those 200 kilograms? Cash, gold, weapons, documents, or something entirely different?” FPÖ Secretary-General Christian Hafenecker leveled sharp criticism.

The leading politician believes NEOS leader Beate Meinl-Reisinger is increasingly under pressure to explain herself, especially in light of thereported arrests of two Ukrainian intelligence agents in Vienna: “Austria is not a lawless transit corridor for foreign intelligence services. We are still a neutral state!” He emphasized that the utmost sensitivity must be exercised, especially when it comes to transports by foreign security and intelligence services.

“We Receive Hundreds of Diplomatic Notes Every Day”
The “Krone” inquired with the Foreign Ministry, which stated: “We receive practically hundreds of diplomatic notes every day. We have forwarded the relevant one to the responsible Ministry of the Interior.” The FPÖ therefore intends to keep up its parliamentary offensive and, in a follow-up inquiry, find out who authorized the transport and, ultimately, the lack of inspection—and what exactly the “special cargo” consists of. So the suspense continues in this gold-and-money thriller...