Western countries have welcomed Sweden’s new step towards NATO membership, following a positive vote by the Turkish parliament, with Hungary now remaining the final obstacle to Stockholm joining the Alliance.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, for his part, invited his Swedish counterpart to Budapest yesterday, Tuesday, in order to try to remove the last obstacles for the Scandinavian country’s accession to NATO.

The Turkish parliament’s overwhelming approval of Sweden joining the Alliance ended 20 months of consultations and waiting that tested the patience of Ankara’s Western allies as they look to present a united front against Russia.

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristerson immediately hailed “another step” towards his country’s NATO membership.

Accordingly, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, who at the same time asked Hungary to complete the ratification process “as soon as possible”. Sweden’s accession “makes NATO stronger and strengthens our security”, he stressed.

Washington, for its part, expressed its satisfaction with the outcome of the vote in the Turkish parliament, with White House National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan describing Sweden as “a stable and capable partner whose NATO membership both strengthens the U.S. as well as the Alliance”.

“Sweden’s imminent accession, like that of Finland which has already been completed, will further strengthen” NATO, estimated Steffen Hempstreit, a spokesman for the German government. This is “a direct reaction to the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine”, he recalled.

For Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide, Sweden’s accession to NATO will make the Nordic countries “safer”.

Hungary is now the only member state of the Alliance that has not ratified Sweden’s accession.

For months, Orbán has been demanding “respect” from Stockholm, which he criticizes for its “smear” policy and frequent complaints about his authoritarian tendencies.

“I have today sent a letter to Prime Minister Ulf Kristerson to invite him to Hungary in order to discuss Sweden’s accession to the Atlantic Alliance,” Orbán wrote in X.

In his letter, seen by AFP, he refers to the need to “build a common, solid trust” through “a more intensive political dialogue”.

The answer came a few hours later: “I see no reason to negotiate today,” Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström told reporters.

“During the Madrid summit last year, Hungary (…) gave Sweden guest status” in view of its accession to NATO, without expressing reservations, he underlined.

However, Billstrom said he was ready for “conversations”, regarding “many common issues” and “military cooperation” between the two countries.

“absurd game”

Sweden announced in May 2022, after the Russian invasion of Ukraine, its candidacy for NATO membership together with Finland, which in April became the Alliance’s 31st member.

Hungary has supported Sweden’s accession in principle, but has been delaying taking the necessary steps for months.

Some experts see it as a blackmail strategy by Orbán in an attempt to pressure the EU into making concessions, while others see it as a sign of his closeness to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Orban had promised he would not be the last leader to ratify Sweden’s long-awaited accession, but the Turkish parliament finally caught up to him.

The Socialist Party (MSZP), which belongs to the opposition, asked the Hungarian prime minister “to put an end to this absurd game which significantly damages the image of Hungary”.

On the other hand, the pro-Orbán media was yesterday, Tuesday, against Sweden for “asking for a blood pact without making any reciprocating move”, according to an article in the Mandiner magazine.