Hungary says it will withdraw from ICC as Israel’s Netanyahu visits

Hungary’s government has announced it will withdraw from the International Criminal Court (ICC), just before Prime Minister Viktor Orban was to receive his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu, the subject of an ICC arrest warrant.

“Hungary exits the International Criminal Court. The government will initiate the withdrawal procedure on Thursday, in accordance with the constitutional and international legal framework,” Orban’s chief of staff Gergely Gulyas posted on Facebook on Thursday.

Hungary’s prime minister Viktor Orban had raised the prospect of the country’s exit from the ICC after US President Donald Trump imposed sanctions on the court’s prosecutor Karim Khan in February.

“It’s time for Hungary to review what we’re doing in an international organisation that is under US sanctions,” Orban said on X in February.

The withdrawal bill is likely to be approved by Hungary’s parliament that is dominated by Orban’s Fidesz party.

The ICC has not yet commented on Hungary’s announcement.

A state’s withdrawal from the court also takes effect only one year after the deposit of the withdrawal’s instrument – usually in the form of a formal letter declaring the pullout – with the UN Secretary General’s office.