Israel is ‘anchor in the Middle East’ Orban tells Netanyahu, noting Hungary’s support throughout war

After meeting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Budapest, Hungarian premier Viktor Orban says that the Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023, “undermined the security of the entire world.”

Orban says that he hopes that “you and your government can guarantee the security of Israel and your right to self-defense.” He notes that Hungary has stood beside Israel throughout the entire war.

It is important to Hungary that Israel remain strong and stable, he says, calling it “an anchor in the Middle East.”

He notes that he signed off on Hungary’s entrance into the ICC, but that it has become a “political court.”

“If courts are driven by political considerations, then democracies cannot take part in them,” says Orban.

Orban laments the rise of antisemitism in Europe, while stressing that “in Hungary, Hamas flags were not waved.”

“We are showing zero tolerance, and Jews in Hungary can feel safe,” he says.

Orban says that illegal immigration into Europe is a driver of antisemitism, and the “elites in Brussels are not dealing with it.” Orban stresses that Budapest will not accept any EU migration agreement to allow asylum seekers in.

The two leaders appear to have accidentally swapped positions during their remarks, with Netanyahu speaking from a podium with Hungarian flags behind him, and Orban with Israeli flags behind him.