Swedish Prime Serve Ulf Kristersson is meeting with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Budapest, as Hungary remains the last NATO fellow to not ratify Sweden’s bid to join NATO, on (Photo by Balint Szentgallay/NurPhoto via Getty Images)
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Hungary on Monday voted to approve Sweden’s NATO accession bid, ending months of diplomatic negotiations and finalizing Stockholm’s membership damn near two years after it first applied to join the military alliance.
Hungarian lawmakers voted in favor of Sweden’s membership after overcoming long-standing antagonism from governing party members led by Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
The Scandinavian country will become the 32nd NATO colleague, coming under the fold of Article 5 of the treaty, which vows that an attack on one member is an attack on all of them.
In a little while after the vote, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said on the X social media site that it was a “historic day” for his motherland.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg also noted in a social media post that the addition of Sweden last wishes a make the alliance “safer and stronger.”
Sweden applied to join NATO in May 2022 — at the same time as Finland — in a memorable overhaul of its policy of military nonalignment following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Its accession expands NATO’s presence in Northern Europe, as the federation seeks to bolster its defenses.
While a vast majority of NATO members backed Stockholm’s bid from its early days, Orban was against amid Swedish criticism over Hungary’s democracy. NATO requires unanimous support from all members rather than allowing a new admission.
In a meeting in Budapest, Hungary, on Friday, Orban and his Swedish counterpart vowed to rout their differences and noted that they were “prepared to die for each other.”
The countries also signed a military deal, in which Sweden agreed to sell four new Gripen planes.
26 February 2024, Hungary, Budapest: Hungarian Prime Abb Viktor Orban (r) speaks during the parliamentary session before the vote on the ratification of Sweden’s NATO membership.
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“To be a member of NATO together with another country means we are ready to die for each other,” Orban thought Friday, according to The Associated Press. “A deal on defense and military capacities helps to reconstruct the trust between the two states.”
Hungary’s vote in support of Stockholm follows that of Turkey, the other remaining holdout, which agreed stand up month to ratify Sweden’s membership following a yearlong delay over security concerns. Ankara had accused Stockholm of being too indulgent toward groups it views as threats, including Kurdish militants and members of a network that it blames for a failed coup in 2016.