A closer alliance between Hungary and Israel was the focus of a roundtable discussion at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) held May 4-5 in Budapest. The talk was led by Attila Kovács, EU Research Director at the Centre for Fundamental Rights.
„The alliance between the two countries is a successful one, and in the framework of this cooperation, Hungary and Israel are both flag bearers for the protection of nationalism and democracy.
Perhaps what Israel can learn the most from Hungary right now is that it is not enough to win elections.”
– said Gadi Taub, an assistant professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
Matan Peleg, Managing Director of Im Tirtzu, said that the situation in Israel now is similar to when Donald Trump won the presidential election in America. „The left has also acted angrily in our country. The day after Netanyahu and Likud won, they immediately took to the streets. But I was also able to say in front of half a million people that we want a Jewish democratic state, and the will of the voters showed it.”
He added that Israel’s cultural elite, judges and media condemned them and refused to accept the election results.
„For us, Israel comes first, and the globalists want some kind of a cataclysm, and the left is willing to burn everything to achieve this.”
Im Tirtzu’s CEO claimed that the situation on the streets of Tel Aviv is no different from what was seen in American cities immediately after Donald Trump’s election in 2016. On Israel’s relationship with Hungary, he said that difficult times are a test of true friendship and that Viktor Orbán has proven to be a true friend.
„The European Union is obsessed with condemning Israel,” he said of the bloc’s regular scolding of the Jewish state’s leaders.” Nothing Israel does satisfies the EU.
The only country on the continent that is doing all it can to defend Israel and its right to self-defense in the EU and the UN is Hungary.”
– he stressed.
Robert Greenway, Executive Director of the Abraham Accords Peace Institute in the US, said that the main concern in Israel now is what threat Iran might pose to the country. He said Israel and the United States together can counter this situation in the Middle East.
„Economic interests are essential for the future security of the region because if we trade together, we will protect it. Israel can replace some of the food and spare parts lost due to the war in Ukraine,” he added.
During the discussion, it was mentioned that Hungary was the only EU country invited by the Jewish state to sign the Abraham Accords between Israel and Arab countries in 2020. Matan Peleg underlined:
They are grateful that Viktor Orbán vetoed the EU resolution condemning Israel when the Jewish state defended itself against Hamas.
