The move by Hungary coincides with a visit from Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu, who is wanted by the Hague-based court
Hungary will pull out of the International Criminal Court (ICC) because it has become a “political tool,” Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said.
The announcement coincides with a visit to the EU and NATO member-state by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who is wanted by the Hague-based body for alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity related to Israel’s ongoing military operation in Gaza.
During a joint press-conference with Netanyahu on Thursday, Orban said that in recent years the ICC had stopped being impartial and turned into “a political court.”
Hungary, which is a “democratic state governed by the rule of law, cannot participate in this,” he insisted.
The Israeli leader praised Budapest for its “brave step” in quitting the UN court, which he described as “a corrupt organization” that chose to prosecute Israel instead of going after terrorists.
Earlier on Thursday, Orban’s chief of staff, Gergely Gulyas, announced that Budapest would officially begin the process of withdrawal from the ICC later in the day “in accordance with [the] constitutional and international legal framework.”
Budapest signed the Rome Statute, which gives the ICC its powers, in 1999 and ratified it two years later.
April 03, 2025 at 06:24PM
RT