Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has invited Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to visit his country and has promised not to observe an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant against Netanyahu. This is in contrast to other European leaders, such as Ireland’s Simon Harris, who stated that they would be prepared to arrest Netanyahu if he visited their country. The ICC has issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu, former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas military chief Mohammed Deif for alleged war crimes in the Gaza conflict.
Orban’s support for Netanyahu comes as he believes the ICC’s ruling is wrong and that Netanyahu should be able to negotiate safely in Hungary. Orban and Netanyahu have had close political relations since Orban came to power in 2010, with Netanyahu visiting Budapest in 2017. The ICC decision has been strongly condemned by Israeli leaders and the White House, while EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell has called for EU member states to respect the court’s decision.
In the EU, Hungary and the Czech Republic have been strong supporters of Israel. The Czech Foreign Ministry stated it would respect its international legal obligations despite disagreeing with the ICC decision. Czech Prime Minister Petr Fiala called the decision “unfortunate” and criticized the ICC for equating elected representatives of a democratic state with leaders of an Islamist terrorist organization. Overall, the situation highlights the divided opinions within the EU regarding the ICC ruling and Israel’s actions.
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