Both Israeli and Hungarian media reported that Budapest will move its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem next month. In doing so, it violates the international consensus regarding the status of this disputed city. Al-Khadem said Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen and his Hungarian counterpart Peter Szijjarto agreed on the move last week. Azrael times.
The move is said to be a “special gesture” from right-wing Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban to his longtime international ally, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Hungarian President Katalin Novakova said on Friday that the embassy’s fate has yet to be decided, she wrote. Reuters.
“I also read the news in the press,” Novakova told a news conference during her visit to Prague. Hungary has not yet decided to move its embassy in Israel.
Hungarian Foreign Ministry spokesman Mate Pakzolay also did not confirm the news, but said the ministry would in any case provide an update on any changes in the embassy. “We moved the commercial section of our Israeli embassy to Jerusalem years ago,” he said.
Israel did not comment on the situation.
Hungary did not report @employee over moving its embassy to Jerusalem, paving the way for another conflict with its allies. Just as EU money is fading away from Orbán, he is trying its limits (as is the stalling on 🇫🇮🇸🇪 joining NATO). https://t.co/C26OssJNFc https://t.co/JxrpcWWYiY
– panyiszabolcs March 3, 2023
In doing so, Hungary becomes the first country in the European Union to open an embassy in Jerusalem, which Israel claims as its capital. But most countries favor Tel Aviv because the status of Jerusalem is contested under international law until the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is resolved.
As noted by Hungarian journalist Szabolcs Bane, Hungary has not yet informed the European Commission of its intention. Perhaps this will lead to another conflict with the EU executive – the authoritarian regime in Budapest is already in trouble due to frequent violations of the rule of law.
Netanyahu, who returned to power in November, has enjoyed strong support in recent years from his ally Orban, who has been willing in the past to block EU statements or actions critical of Israel. After congratulating him on his election, Orban said, “strong leaders are needed in difficult times.”
By moving the embassy, Orbán strengthened Nehanahö’s position. He was shaken at home and abroad after coming under fire for his far-right government’s controversial plans to reform the judiciary. Critics describe it as an attack on democracy.
More than a hundred thousand people demonstrated in Tel Aviv against the Netanyahu government
The Israeli parliament passed a law in 1980 declaring the “complete and united” city of Jerusalem the capital of Israel. The United Nations considers East Jerusalem occupied and the status of the city a matter of contention until it is resolved through negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians, who want East Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state.
Most foreign embassies in Israel are based in Tel Aviv precisely because of the disputed status of Jerusalem in the east of the occupied city. This global consensus was violated by former US President Donald Trump in 2018. His decision to move the embassy caused outrage in the Arab world, El-Khadem writes. The New Arab.
In addition to the United States, Guatemala, Honduras and Kosovo have embassies in Jerusalem. The Czech Republic decided to move its diplomatic office only from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Outgoing President Milos Zeman pressed for a long time to move the embassy.