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Hungary's parliament overwhelmingly approved Sweden's membership in NATO on Monday, paving the way for the Nordic nation to join NATO after nearly two years of intense negotiations and dealing a geopolitical blow to Russian President Vladimir Putin. gave.
The final hurdle for Stockholm to join NATO was approval from the Hungarian parliament. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson visited Budapest on Friday to discuss defense and security cooperation with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán. The two countries appear to have reached a compromise, with a deal in which Hungary will acquire four new Gripen fighter jets made in Sweden.
Of the 194 MPs who voted, only six rejected Sweden's membership.
“This is a historic day,” Christerson told X shortly after the vote. “Sweden is ready to take responsibility for Euro-Atlantic security.”
Attila Kisbenedek/AFP/Getty Images
Delegates in the Hungarian parliament will be seen voting on Monday on ratifying Sweden's membership in NATO.
Sweden will officially join the alliance after submitting its instruments of accession to the US government, which is the depositary of the North Atlantic Treaty. NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg confirmed that Sweden would become a member of the bloc, as all allies had approved their participation.
“Sweden's membership will make us all stronger and more secure,” he said.
Sweden's membership brings NATO's membership to 32, given that Russia has launched a war against Ukraine, in part due to the alliance's growth in Eastern Europe along its borders with Russia. The result was ironic.
Last year, Finland became the 31st NATO member, adding about 1,300 kilometers (830 miles) to its alliance border with Russia.
As NATO states, Finland and Sweden will enjoy the protections afforded them under Article 5 of the treaty that established the alliance. The treaty stipulates that an attack on one member state is considered an attack on all member states.
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Sweden and Finland have announced their intention to join an alliance to counter Russia's invasion of Ukraine, abandoning the decades-old policy of non-alignment that defined their diplomatic relations during the Cold War.
NATO has an open door policy. This means that any country that has expressed an interest in NATO and is able and willing to uphold the principles of NATO's founding treaty can be invited to join.
However, under accession rules, any member state can veto the accession of new countries. Most NATO members quickly approved Finland and Sweden's application, but Hungary and Turkey held out for a while.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has accused Finland and Sweden of being too lenient towards Kurdish terrorist groups, and Prime Minister Orbán has criticized European Union standards on the rule of law (fundamental values enshrined in the EU Treaties). He claimed that he was spreading a “blatant lie” that his country was not complying with the law. .
These concerns prompted the EU to freeze billions of dollars worth of funds destined for Hungary until such concerns were resolved. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and his government have repeatedly denied breaking EU rules.
Hungary and Turkey subsequently softened their stance on Finland's membership, and approved Finland's application in March last year. Turkey's parliament approved Sweden's entry last month after Stockholm strengthened anti-terrorism laws and pledged closer cooperation with Turkey on security concerns.
01:05 – Source: CNN
Turkish parliament approves Sweden's NATO membership proposal
Immediately after Turkey's vote, Prime Minister Orban told NATO chief Stoltenberg that his government also supported Sweden's membership. The Hungarian leader said in his State of the Nation address on February 17 that the country could ratify Sweden's membership at the start of the spring parliament on Monday.
“Hungary has a vested interest in European security,” government spokesperson Zoltan Kovacs said after Monday's vote. “Sweden has a strong and reliable ally who will make the future of NATO even better.”
NATO allies have been concerned that Sweden's bid has been stalled for months, despite Prime Minister Viktor Orbán publicly supporting Sweden's bid. The drag on Budapest raised concerns that Mr Orbán, the EU leader closest to Putin, was acting in favor of the Kremlin.
But in recent weeks, Europe has had some success in bringing Hungary in line with EU foreign policy objectives. Budapest earlier this month withdrew its objection to a $50 billion EU funding deal for Ukraine, which Prime Minister Viktor Orbán had vetoed in December on procedural grounds. Mr Orbán's critics had accused him of blocking the deal in response to the EU's decision to withhold funds destined for Hungary. Hungary denied there was any link between the two.
Sweden's entry into NATO comes at a critical time in the Ukraine war, with Russia achieving new successes on the battlefield and with Western support for Kiev appearing to be cracking after two years of fighting. Since Hamas' attack on Israel on October 7 sparked war in the Middle East, the focus has shifted from Europe.
Rising populist sentiment in Europe and the United States ahead of elections in June and November, respectively, also threatens to hamper Ukraine's efforts to continue its fight against Russia.
Politicians in Western democracies are willing to pay billions of dollars to support Ukraine and stop the march of authoritarianism abroad at a time when voters are facing issues closer to home, such as dealing with rising inflation. It has struggled to convince increasingly skeptical voters that it is a good use of significant tax dollars.
CNN’s Luke McGee and Lauren Kent contributed to this report