The Hungarian Parliament ratified Sweden’s admission to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) on Monday, marking a key step for the Scandinavian country's desire to join the military alliance following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Sweden's NATO membership was overwhelmingly approved by Hungarian lawmakers, with 188 out of 199 votes in favour. The law is expected to become official within the next few days. Subsequently, Sweden will be able to submit its "instrument of accession" to Washington, as per the NATO treaty, which will make it the 32nd member of the Alliance.
Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson hailed it as a "historic day" on social media, asserting that "Sweden is ready to embrace its Euro-Atlantic security responsibilities."
The journey to this point has been fraught and lengthy, with negotiations with both Turkey and the Hungarian nationalist leader Viktor Orbán, who was the last to hold out after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's
agreement.
At the inception of the parliamentary session, Orbán had commended the recent visit of his Swedish counterpart, a crucial step towards establishing a "fair and respectful relationship between the two countries", beyond "differences of opinions".
"Sweden joining NATO will bolster Hungarian security," he further declared. Orbán had long ago agreed in principle, but had demanded "respect" from Stockholm before finalising the process after years of criticising his leadership.
To cement this newfound cooperation, Hungary announced on Friday the purchase of four warplanes from Sweden to augment its current fleet of 14 Gripen aircraft.
The protocol of Sweden’s accession, requiring unanimity among Atlantic Alliance members, had been hanging in the balance since May 2022.
