Netanyahu meets with prominent Hungarian Rabbi ahead of Hungarian embassy move

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Rabbi Slomo Koves and Rabbi Shmuel Oirechman on Thursday ahead of a discussion on moving the Hungarian embassy to Jerusalem.

Rabbi Koves is head of Egységes Magyarországi Izraelita Hitközség (EMIH) [United Hungarian Israelite Community of Faith] which is one of the three major Jewish faith communities in Hungary. Rabbi Oirechman is the general director of Hungary's Orthodox community.

The trio discussed several topics ranging such as issues of Jewish communal life in Hungary as well as the events that may accompany the move of the Hungarian embassy to Jerusalem.

Rabbi Koves stressed the importance of the friendship between the two countries during the meeting, community leaders used the occasion to invite Netanyahu for a reciprocal visit to Budapest, coinciding with the 35th anniversary of Chabad in Hungary.

Netanyahu's bestselling book: Bibi - My Story was translated into Hungarian to celebrate the historic moment, and the prime minister was presented with the first copy of the translation during his meeting with the Hungarian rabbis.

The translation is set to be published in honor of the embassy move and Netanyahu's visit to Budapest. 

Rabbi Koves also presented Netanyahu with the new plans for the Holocaust museum in Budapest, the construction of which has been ongoing for the last few years.

Moving the Embassy to Jerusalem

Moving the Hungarian Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem was first decided in late May this year after Foreign Minister Eli Cohen visited Budapest and spoke with his Hungarian counterpart Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto. 

Once the move has gone ahead Hungary will be the first EU nation to have moved its embassy to Israel's capital Jerusalem.