Herzog to travel to Hungary, meet with PM Magyar, at Netanyahu's request

This trip will be the first visit to Hungary by a senior Israeli official since Magyar took over the prime ministership from Viktor Orbán in April. 

President Isaac Herzog will fly to Hungary on Tuesday at the request of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for a one-day visit with the nation's president, András Baka, and new prime minister, Péter Magyar.

This trip will be the first visit to Hungary by a senior Israeli official since Magyar took over the prime ministership from Viktor Orbán in April.

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Hungarian Prime Minister-elect Péter Magyar held what the Prime Minister’s Office described as a warm introductory phone call on April 15 as both sides moved to signal continuity in ties after Hungary’s recent election.

According to the PMO, the conversation focused on preserving the close relationship between Jerusalem and Budapest under Hungary’s incoming leadership.

During the call, Magyar said he intended to maintain the close relationship between Hungary and Israel and invited Netanyahu to attend a ceremony commemorating the 70th anniversary of the Hungarian Uprising. Netanyahu welcomed the remarks, accepted the invitation, and in turn invited Magyar to a government-to-government meeting in Jerusalem.

New relationship forms after close Netanyahu-Orban ties rendered moot 

For years beforehand, Viktor Orban had cultivated a public friendship with his Israeli counterpart, leading to close ties between the two states.

When the International Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for Netanyahu and former defense minister Yoav Gallant in November 2024, Hungary, under Orban, announced its intention to withdraw from the ICC.

Even before that, Hungary became the first member country of the ICC to announce that Netanyahu would be able to visit without being arrested.

 Netanyahu visited the country in April of 2025 and praised Orban’s decision as “an important decision for the whole world, to stand up against a corrupt organization like the ICC.”