Hungary’s parliament approves Sweden’s joining NATO
Hungary’s parliament on Monday approved Sweden’s accession to NATO, clearing the last hurdle before the historic step by the Nordic country, whose neutrality remained intact during two world wars and the escalating conflict of the Cold War.
Hungary’s vote ended months of delay in completing Sweden’s security policy changes and followed a visit by Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson on Friday (February 23) after the two countries signed an arms deal.
“Sweden is leaving behind 200 years of neutrality and military non-alignment,” Kristersson said at a news conference.
“We are joining NATO to better defend who we are and what we believe in. We are working with others to defend our freedom, our democracy, and our values.”
The government of Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has faced pressure from NATO allies to seal Sweden’s entry into the alliance.
“We look forward to welcoming Sweden, along with Finland, to the NATO alliance very soon,” White House spokeswoman Karine Jean-Pierre said.
He encouraged the Hungarian government to quickly complete the process of allowing Sweden to enter NATO.
“Sweden’s membership will make us all stronger and safer,” NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said at the X.
Stockholm abandoned its non-aligned policy for greater security within the North Atlantic Treaty Organization following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Western leaders have said that with Sweden’s admission of Finland into NATO, Russian President Vladimir Putin has actually achieved what he tried to avoid when he started his war in Ukraine – expanding the alliance.
“When it comes to Russia, we can only hope that they won’t like that Sweden is becoming a member of NATO,” Kristersson said.
“Besides, we can’t know what they do. We are prepared for all kinds of things.”
The addition of Sweden, which has not been at war since 1814, and Finland is the most significant expansion of the alliance since it added members from Eastern Europe after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991.
While Sweden has increased cooperation with NATO in recent decades, contributing to operations in places such as Afghanistan, its membership is set to simplify defense planning and cooperation on the alliance’s northern fringes.
“NATO has gained a member that is serious and capable, and it removes the uncertainty factor in northern Europe,” said Robert Dalsjo, a senior analyst at the Swedish Defense Research Agency, a government think tank.
“Sweden secures security in crowd…backed by US nuclear deterrence.”
Sweden also brings to the alliance resources such as state-of-the-art submarines suited to Baltic Sea conditions and a large fleet of domestically produced Gripen fighter jets. It is increasing military spending and should reach the 2 percent limit of NATO’s GDP this year.
long road to ratification
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine boosted support for joining NATO in Sweden, especially as neighboring Finland moved rapidly to join.
“It’s been a long journey,” Josephine Wallbom, a 23-year-old political science student, said in Stockholm. “Me and everyone else were probably a little skeptical at the beginning, but now I think it’s the right decision.”
Finland joined NATO last year. Sweden was kept waiting because Turkey and Hungary, which have better relations with Russia than other members of the US-led coalition, objected.
Turkey delayed the ratification of Sweden’s membership, demanding tougher action against Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK) militants it says have made a home in Sweden.
Sweden changed its laws and relaxed rules on arms sales to reassure Turkey.
President Tayyip Erdogan also linked the ratification to US approval of the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Turkey, with Ankara now hoping Washington will work to secure the support of the US Congress.
Hungary’s pull was naturally less obvious, with Budapest mostly expressing its irritation at Swedish criticism of the direction of democracy under nationalist Prime Minister Orbán rather than any concrete demands.
The Hungarian ratification, supported by a majority of lawmakers, will now be signed by the country’s parliament speaker and president within days.
After that, the remaining formalities such as the submission of accession documents in Washington are likely to be completed rapidly.