Hungary’s parliament has ratified Finland’s bid to join NATO.
The measure passed with 182 votes for and six against. Hungary still has to ratify NATO accession for Sweden, expected to pass in coming weeks.
Turkey is now the only one of the 30 NATO members not to have ratified Finland’s accession. Full unanimity is required to admit a new member into the alliance.
However, a vote on accession is expected to be held before Turkey’s presidential and parliamentary elections on May 14.
While Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has long signaled his country’s support for NATO expansion, his government has alleged that Swedish and Finnish politicians have told “blatant lies” about the condition of Hungary’s democracy which has left some ruling party lawmakers unsure of whether to support the accession bids.
The EU has for years accused Orban’s government of cracking down on media freedom and LGBTQ rights, overseeing an entrenched culture of official corruption and co-opting state institutions to serve the interests of the governing Fidesz party.
Some Hungarian opposition politicians and analysts believe the country’s foot-dragging on ratification had aimed at pushing Sweden and Finland to support the release of billions in EU funds earmarked for Budapest that have been frozen over alleged breaches of the bloc’s rule-of-law standards.
But Samuel Agoston Mraz, director of the pro-government Nezopont Intezet thinktank in Budapest, said Hungary won’t make a move regarding Sweden until Turkey decides on whether to approve the country’s NATO membership bid. Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is calling for Stockholm to take tougher action against Kurdish activists Ankara considers "terrorists".
Mraz said Hungary “does not want to make decisions against the Turks” and also wants guarantees from Stockholm on improving bilateral relations.
