Hungary Postpones Approval of Sweden's NATO Membership, Citing Deteriorating Relations

Hungarian lawmakers will vote on Sweden’s NATO accession bid after parliament’s summer recess the earliest as the issue has not been put on the agenda of the last session before the summer break. Hungary is the only EU member state not to ratify Sweden’s bid after the latter’s criticism of eroding democratic values and a lack of rule of law in Hungary has led to tense relations between Budapest and Stockholm.

Hungary's parliament, led by Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's Fidesz party, has decided to delay the ratification of Sweden's NATO membership until after the summer recess. Reports from Hungarian online media outlets, hvg.hu and index.hu, revealed that the parliamentary vote, which was not included in the agenda for next week's session, would be further postponed due to the worsening relations between the two countries.
Although the parliament's press office did not confirm these reports, opposition lawmaker Agnes Vadai took to Facebook to express her belief that Prime Minister Orbán would not prioritize Sweden's NATO accession vote next week. Reuters' requests for comments from the Swedish Foreign Ministry went unanswered.

Enhanced security
Sweden and Finland, prompted by Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year, abandoned their decades-long policy of military non-alignment and sought enhanced security through NATO membership. Finland successfully became a NATO member in April, while Sweden's journey has encountered more obstacles. Sweden aims to join the alliance at the upcoming NATO summit scheduled for July 11-12 in Vilnius and has received strong support from several member states, including the United States. However, both Turkey and Hungary have been reluctant to ratify Sweden's accession.
Hungary's ratification process has remained stalled in parliament since July of last year, and Prime Minister Orbán expressed concerns regarding Sweden and Finland's NATO membership for the first time in February. Among his criticisms, Orbán accused both countries of spreading "outright lies" about Hungary's democracy and adherence to the rule of law. Nonetheless, Hungarian lawmakers granted approval for Finland's NATO bid in late March.
Orbán has long been in conflict with Brussels due to EU criticisms of Hungary's democratic record and rule of law standards since he assumed office in 2010. In April, Orbán's chief of staff called on Sweden to take measures to restore confidence, emphasizing the strained relations between Stockholm and Budapest. Furthermore, the top Republican on the US Senate Foreign Relations Committee revealed on June 14 that he was blocking a $735 million arms sale to Hungary due to the government's refusal to approve Sweden's NATO membership bid.
Political analysts believe that delaying the ratification is Orbán’s way of forcing concessions out of Brussels which has frozen the payment of billions of euros to Hungary over rule of law issues. The EU has requested Budapest to carry out a set of reforms to address the concerns of the bloc and the evaluation of these measures is ongoing.
The decision to postpone the ratification of Sweden's NATO membership by Hungary's parliament highlights the ongoing tensions between the two countries. As Sweden eagerly looks to strengthen its security alliance, it remains to be seen how these diplomatic hurdles will be overcome and whether Hungary will eventually grant its approval.