Hungary has decided to withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC), the government announced on Thursday, coinciding with the state visit of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
“The government will initiate the withdrawal procedure on Thursday, in accordance with the constitutional and international legal framework,” stated Gergely Gulyás, chief of staff to Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán.
The ICC has faced growing controversy, particularly following its arrest warrants against Russian President Vladimir Putin and Netanyahu. Despite the warrant issued against him over his handling of the war in Gaza, Netanyahu arrived in Budapest on Wednesday for his visit.
Gulyás criticized the ICC, claiming it had strayed from its intended purpose and turned into a “political body,” citing the warrant against Netanyahu as an example. He further asserted that Hungary never incorporated the ICC’s 1998 Rome Statute into its domestic legal system, meaning the court’s arrest warrants are not enforceable in the country.
He also noted that leading military powers have never been members of the ICC, and that the United States has even imposed sanctions on the organization.
Gulyás referenced a similar stance in Poland, where Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated in January that Netanyahu would not be arrested if he attended a memorial event at Auschwitz, despite the ICC warrant.
Issued in November, the warrant alleges that Netanyahu and former Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant employed “starvation as a method of warfare” by restricting humanitarian aid to Gaza and deliberately targeting civilians in Israel’s campaign against Hamas—charges Israeli officials deny.
In response to the warrant, Orbán extended an invitation for Netanyahu’s state visit, accusing the ICC of “interfering in an ongoing conflict for political purposes,” arguing that such actions undermine international law and exacerbate tensions.
Hungary will become the latest country to step away from the ICC. Burundi was the first to exit in 2017, while South Africa and The Gambia previously threatened to leave before reversing course. All three countries have accused the court of bias against African nations.
The Philippines also withdrew from the ICC in 2019, though its former president, Rodrigo Duterte, remains under legal scrutiny and is currently facing prosecution on murder charges linked to his controversial “war on drugs” campaign.
