On Wednesday, the Hungarian Parliament, on a government-party initiative and in an expedited procedure, decided to halt the withdrawal process from the International Criminal Court (ICC). State Secretary Péter Bódis presented the proposal during the session, stating that the goal is to stop the withdrawal process. The State Secretary argued that:
‘It is not by chance that Hungary was one of the founding member states. With this bill, Hungary is expressing that it condemns the most serious crimes affecting the entire international community, and it also allows Hungary to remain a member of this international community. In recent times, unfortunately, we have drifted away not only from European but also from international organizations.’
János Bóka, representing the former ruling party Fidesz, which moved into opposition after the 13 May election, raised concerns about stopping the withdrawal process and about the functioning of the ICC.
According to him, the question is not whether the prosecution of genocide, war crimes, and aggression is legally correct under international law, but whether the ICC in its current form is suitable for enforcing it. He emphasized that the international community is divided on this issue.
‘This body has become a political tool, it has lost its moral compass, and it follows a flawed strategy when it seeks to judge ongoing conflicts under international law instead of only concluded ones. This often does not help but rather hinders the resolution of such conflicts. Therefore, Fidesz decided that it does not wish to share legal and political responsibility with it, and thus decided in favour of withdrawal,’ the MP explained the previous government’s intention to leave.
In the end, the 199-member parliament voted 133 in favour, 37 against, with five abstentions, to formally repeal the law on leaving the ICC, just ahead of the deadline. The ICC’s governing body has already welcomed the decision as an ‘important development’ after the government announced last week that it would discontinue the withdrawal process.
New Government, New Rules
In May 2024, the ICC announced that it was seeking arrest warrants for Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar in Gaza and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on charges of war crimes and crimes against humanity. The Hungarian government immediately criticized the decision, and Prime Minister Viktor Orbán—calling the ICC’s move ‘absurd and shameful’—invited Netanyahu to Hungary, assuring him he would be completely safe, as Hungary would not enforce the ICC decision. The withdrawal process was formalized on 20 May, when the Hungarian Parliament overwhelmingly voted to leave the international body.
After the Tisza Party and its leader Péter Magyar won a landslide victory in the April elections against Viktor Orbán—who had governed Hungary for 16 consecutive years—one of the new Prime Minister’s first announcements were that they would stop the withdrawal process from the ICC. During the campaign, Magyar also indicated that Hungary would execute ICC warrants against anyone, including Netanyahu.
Following his electoral victory in April, Péter Magyar held a ‘friendly introductory conversation’ with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. According to a statement from the Israeli Prime Minister’s Office, Magyar expressed that he intends to maintain close relations between Hungary and Israel, and at the same time invited Netanyahu to the commemoration of the 70th anniversary of the 1956 Revolution. Netanyahu welcomed these statements, accepted the invitation, and invited Péter Magyar to Jerusalem for an intergovernmental meeting.
Later, responding to a media question about whether Netanyahu would be arrested in Hungary, Péter Magyar confirmed that he had invited everyone he had spoken with to the 1956 anniversary events in Hungary, including the Israeli Prime Minister. However, he also told Netanyahu that Hungary intends to remain a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC), adding regarding arrest: ‘the Israeli prime minister is also aware of the laws.’
In fact, several countries, including France, Italy, and Poland, have indicated that while they support the International Criminal Court in principle, they have said that enforcing possible arrest warrants against Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu could depend on legal issues and political considerations. A similar scenario could also be conceivable in Hungary’s case.
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