Hungary’s government has announced its decision to withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC), just as Prime Minister Viktor Orban was preparing to meet Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who faces an arrest warrant issued by the ICC.
This announcement follows Netanyahu’s arrival in Budapest on Thursday for his first European trip since Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza began in 2023.
The ICC had issued an arrest warrant for Netanyahu in March 2023, accusing him of alleged war crimes related to the Gaza conflict. Despite this, Orban had previously stated that Hungary would not enforce the warrant, and the invitation to Netanyahu was extended shortly after the warrant was issued.
Orban’s chief of staff, Gergely Gulyas, confirmed Hungary’s withdrawal in a Facebook post, stating that the government would begin the formal withdrawal process from the ICC, in line with constitutional and international legal frameworks. Once initiated, Hungary’s exit from the court will take effect one year after the submission of the withdrawal notice to the UN Secretary General’s office.
The ICC, established in 2002 and headquartered in The Hague, has the mandate to prosecute individuals for the most serious international crimes when national courts are unwilling or unable to act.
Despite support from 125 member states, the ICC has faced challenges, including low conviction rates and difficulties in enforcing its decisions, especially against countries like Russia, the United States, Israel, and China, which do not recognize its jurisdiction.
Hungary’s decision to withdraw follows a history of resistance to fully comply with ICC decisions. While Hungary signed and ratified the Rome Statute that created the ICC, it has not enacted the associated convention, arguing constitutional concerns, which it claims absolves it of obligations to follow ICC rulings. The only other countries to have withdrawn from the court are Burundi and the Philippines.
