The site, known as the Hungarian Academy, will function as both a cultural center and an official extension of Hungary’s mission in Israel.
By Shula Rosen
Hungary is expanding its diplomatic footprint in Jerusalem, raising its flag over a new embassy branch that will begin operating early next year, according to information provided to The Times of Israel.
The site, known as the Hungarian Academy, will function as both a cultural center and an official extension of Hungary’s mission in Israel.
The new branch is located in the Talbiyeh neighborhood, next to the YMCA, and will open once its director arrives in January.
It will join two other European representations already clustered in the same area: the Czech Republic’s embassy branch, which faces the new Hungarian site, and Slovakia’s branch a short distance away.
Hungary’s primary embassy will remain in Tel Aviv, though Budapest has maintained a separate trade office in Jerusalem since 2019.
Only seven countries currently host full embassies in Jerusalem — the US, Guatemala, Honduras, Kosovo, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay and Fiji — making Hungary the first European Union member to open a diplomatic branch in the capital following the US decision in 2017 under President Donald Trump.
The step had been on the table for years but was slowed by the Hamas-led terrorist attacks of October 7, 2023.
The move comes as ties between Budapest and Jerusalem remain warm. During Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s wartime trip to Hungary last year — his first visit to Europe since the ICC issued arrest warrants for him and then-Defense Minister Yoav Gallant — Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán reiterated that his government would not enforce the order.
Hungary’s honorary consul in Israel described the current state of relations as exceptionally close.
“The relations between Hungary and Israel are excellent, and develop every day to an additional level,” David Wiernik told JNS at the time of Netanyahu’s visit, adding that “The recognition of Jerusalem as Israel’s capital, and the move to Jerusalem, is very important to the State of Israel and is much more than a symbolic move.”
Hungary has signaled repeatedly that it views itself as one of Israel’s strongest partners within the EU, a position reflected in its latest diplomatic expansion.
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