Sweden’s accession to NATO remains blocked by Hungary. On Monday, the deputies of Viktor Orban’s majority refused to sit in parliament. Washington no longer hides its annoyance.
MPs from Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s coalition boycotted a vote on Monday that could have allowed Hungary to ratify Sweden’s NATO accession protocol.
Under pressure from the Atlantic Alliance and the United States, Hungary is the last NATO country that has still not said yes to Sweden.
To circumvent the government’s procrastination, the parliamentary opposition had therefore requested that the subject be included on the agenda of the plenary session this Monday.
But the parliamentary majority foiled the maneuver by not going to the hemicycle. Due to lack of quorum, the session was therefore adjourned.
A sign of the impatience of the United States, the American Ambassador David Pressman made the trip to the Hungarian Parliament. In vain.
The ruling Fidesz party, which holds an absolute majority in parliament, has blocked Sweden’s candidacy since July 2022, alleging that Swedish politicians have told “blatant lies” about the state of Hungarian democracy.
At the beginning of January, after the Turkish parliament also gave the green light to Sweden, all eyes were on Budapest and Viktor Orban pledged to the NATO Secretary General to request a final vote in its parliament “at the first possible opportunity”.
But the blockages persist obviously.
In a statement, Fidesz said Monday that ratification of Sweden’s NATO membership could take place during a regular session of parliament, “but we we expect the Swedish Prime Minister to visit Hungary first” However, the Swede Ulf Kristersson declared that he would make the trip, but only after Hungary had approved his country’s membership in NATO.
Note that a bipartisan group of American lawmakers last week called on Viktor Orban to immediately ratify Sweden’s candidacy. And, in a separate statement, Democratic Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland and chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, even mentioned the possibility of imposing sanctions on Hungary for his conduct, calling Orbán “NATO’s most untrustworthy member.”
After Monday’s failed plenary session, Agnes Vadai, a Hungarian lawmaker from the liberal Democratic Coalition party, said Prime Minister Orbán’s conduct had placed Hungary “in a very humiliating position” and that there was “no reason” for his government to have blocked Sweden’s membership in NATO.
A lot of noise for nothing ? The Hungarian Parliament is scheduled to reconvene on February 26. But MP Agnes Vadai said there was no guarantee that Orbán’s party would commit to rapid approval. “Unfortunately, I am not sure whether the opening session will start with the Swedish ratification,” she said.
