Dear Visitor,
Welcome to the website of the Embassy of Hungary in Tel Aviv.
Already in 1948, when the State of Israel was founded, Hungary established diplomatic relations with the newly formed country, and after the regime change, it was the first among the countries of the former Eastern Bloc to restore full diplomatic relations with Israel. Our excellent relationship and bilateral cooperation, which has existed for several decades now, has recently reached unprecedented new levels. Our relationship, which is based on mutual respect and solid foundations of friendship, includes aspects of political, economic, defense, cultural, scientific and educational relations.
Hungary consistently stands up for Israel in international forums, and we also take action against anti-semitism in international organizations. Many hundreds of Israeli students are now pursuing higher education at our country's universities, including within the framework of the Stipendium Hungaricum Scholarship Program. There are 46 weekly flights between our countries, so every year more and more Israeli tourists visit not only Budapest but also our rural towns. Our country is home to the largest Jewish community in Central Europe, which is experiencing a cultural renaissance in one of the safest environments in today's Europe.
We also give priority to our relations with the local Hungarian diaspora numbering close to 300,000 individuals: we pay special attention to the common processing of our historical past, to the nurturing and preservation of Hungarian Jewish culture and identity. Our consular department assists in matters related to the acquisition of Hungarian citizenship, registrations and passport applications, and answers the questions of Hungarian citizens staying here; handles their consular-related interest protection cases.
Between 2008 and 2013, I had the honor of serving my country as ambassador to Israel once. Now, ten years later, I returned with great joy. I will work on enhancing further our bilateral relations with great enthusiasm and commitment.
Enjoy your time on the website!
Zoltán Szentgyörgyi
Ambassador
