Hungary's parliament has opened a repeatedly delayed debate on the ratification of Finland and Sweden's accession to NATO after the two Scandinavian countries applied to join the alliance last year following Russia's full-scale unprovoked invasion of Ukraine. Radio Svoboda writes about it.
Acceptance of new NATO members requires unanimity among the alliance's members, and while most of them, including the United States, immediately and unconditionally supported the entry of Finland and Sweden, Turkey and Hungary have yet to give them the green light.
"This is a difficult decision with serious consequences, so it needs to be carefully considered," Hungarian President Katalin Novak said on Facebook on March 1 before the start of debate in the legislature, which is largely dominated by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's right-wing Fidesz party.
184 deputies voted for the document, seven voted against it, and one person abstained
Turkey has largely objected to the membership of Sweden, which it says has given sanctuary to Kurdish groups that Ankara calls terrorists, while Hungary says membership of the two Scandinavian countries needs careful consideration, without voicing any specific complaints.
Meanwhile, last week Orbán, who has close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, complained for the first time that both NATO contenders were spreading what he called "lies" about the state of democracy and the rule of law in Hungary.
In the past, Orban has also repeatedly criticized EU sanctions against Russia for its war in Ukraine and tried to prevent the introduction of new punitive measures against Moscow.
In his regular Friday interview with public radio, Orbán said on February 24 that while he was in favor of admitting two new members to NATO, he also agreed with more radical lawmakers who said "all is not well".
On June 29, 2022, NATO countries decided to officially invite Finland and Sweden to become members of the alliance, which had previously renounced neutrality and decided to join NATO for security reasons after Russia's full-scale attack on Ukraine.
