Later today, I will invite Israel's Prime Minister, Mr. Netanyahu, to a visit to Hungary. I guarantee him that, if he comes, the International Criminal Court's decision will not have effect and we will not follow its conditions, says Orbán in state radio.
Netanyahu thanks Orbán after the announcement, and says in a statement that Hungary "stands on the side of justice and truth".
Hungary has been part of the ICC's work for over 20 years.
It was on Thursday that the Hague-based ICC ordered that Benjamin Netanyahu and Israel's former Defense Minister Yoav Gallant be arrested, as they are suspected of crimes against humanity and war crimes.
"Noting the decision"
This means that the approximately 120 countries that have signed the ICC's founding document, the Rome Statute, including Hungary, are formally obliged to arrest the leaders if they set foot in any of the countries.
So far, it is unclear how several other countries will relate to the arrest warrant. France does not specify whether Netanyahu would be arrested if he is in the country.
"France notes this decision", the Foreign Ministry announces in a statement.
A spokesperson for British Prime Minister Kier Starmer announces that the country "will always comply with its legal obligations", but does not answer whether the police would arrest Netanyahu, saying he will not "go into hypothetical questions related to individual cases".
Germany's Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock says that "we are of course examining exactly what this means for implementation in Germany".
Ireland would arrest
Ireland's Prime Minister Simon Harris has, however, announced that Netanyahu would be arrested if he came to the country.
On Thursday, Sweden's Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard (M) stated that "Sweden and the EU support the court's important work and safeguard its independence and integrity".
Israel's ally, the United States, has not signed the Rome Statute. The outgoing President Joe Biden is strongly critical of the arrest warrant.
"Let me be clear again: whatever the ICC suggests, it is not possible to equate Israel and Hamas, not at all. We will always stand with Israel against threats to its security", he says in a statement.
The background is the ongoing Gaza war, which started with the terrorist-listed Hamas' large-scale attack on Israel on October 7 last year.
