The end of Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s rule in Hungary is a major domestic political event, but its implications extend beyond Budapest. For the European Union, the transition has foreign-policy consequences, weakening one of the bloc’s biggest obstacles to meaningful action against Israel’s violations of international law.
After Orban’s successor, Peter Magyar, officially took office on May 9 and Hungary dropped its veto, the EU agreed to its first new sanctions package against individual Israeli settlers and organizations since July 2024. Whether Brussels fully uses this opening to shift its policy approach toward Israel, however, will depend on the political will of other key member states.
The end of Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s rule in Hungary is a major domestic political event, but its implications extend beyond Budapest. For the European Union, the transition has foreign-policy consequences, weakening one of the bloc’s biggest obstacles to meaningful action against Israel’s violations of international law.
After Orban’s successor, Peter Magyar, officially took office on May 9 and Hungary dropped its veto, the EU agreed to its first new sanctions package against individual Israeli settlers and organizations since July 2024. Whether Brussels fully uses this opening to shift its policy approach toward Israel, however, will depend on the political will of other key member states.
