Hungary begins process to leave International Criminal Court, citing political bias

Hungary’s parliament has approved a bill initiating the country’s withdrawal from the International Criminal Court (ICC), marking the start of a one-year exit process that the government says is necessary because the court has become politically driven.

The bill, passed on May 20 with 134 votes in favour and 37 against, was introduced by Deputy Prime Minister Zsolt Semjén, Caliber.Az reports via foreign press.

It declares that Hungary “firmly rejects the use of international organisations – in particular criminal courts – as instruments of political influence,” according to the parliament’s official website.

Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s government first announced the decision on April 3, shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu arrived in Budapest for a rare overseas visit. That trip came in defiance of an arrest warrant issued by the ICC over alleged war crimes in Gaza. Hungary, a close ally of Israel, has dismissed the warrant as “brazen” and made it clear it would not detain Netanyahu.

The ICC was established more than 20 years ago to prosecute individuals accused of war crimes, genocide, and crimes against humanity. Hungary, a founding member, ratified the court’s founding treaty in 2001, although the law has never been formally promulgated.

Orbán has increasingly criticised the ICC, stating last month that it is “no longer an impartial court, a rule-of-law court, but rather a political court.”

Hungary’s planned withdrawal prompted concern from the ICC’s Presidency of the Assembly of States Parties, which oversees the governance of the court. Nevertheless, Netanyahu praised Hungary’s move, calling it a “bold and principled decision.”

Under international law, a country’s withdrawal from the ICC takes effect one year after the United Nations Secretary-General receives formal notification.

By Tamilla Hasanova