Hungary's Last-Minute Approval of Sweden's NATO Accession: A Fruitless Stand
This action marks the first decision of the new president, who took up his role on Tuesday. Sulyok succeeded Katalin Novak, who stepped down amidst controversy after pardoning someone convicted of concealing paedophilia.
The Swedish application had been on hold, awaiting a vote in the National Assembly since July 2022. The parliament consented to Sweden to join NATO on Monday, February 26, with 188 out of 198 members voting in favour.
Despite previous assurances from Viktor Orban’s government that they would not allow it, Hungary has agreed to accept Sweden into NATO as the final country of the Alliance to do so.
With the ratification now signed by the President of Hungary, Sweden has become the 32nd member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
Hungary gained absolutely nothing
Andras Racz, a Hungarian expert on international politics and an analyst at the think tank DGAP, has stated that "unlike Turkey, which took a transactional stance, Hungary literally gained nothing from the lengthy obstruction of Sweden's NATO accession".
Even top Hungarian officials are puzzled by the block on Sweden's NATO accession - Racz noted, referring to his sources. "Everyone says the directive came from the top, indicating it was Orban’s decision," the analyst added.
"Hungary achieved nothing; the outcome of the delay is nil," Racz remarked. He believes this is particularly evident when compared with Turkey's policy, which was rational and transactional. Ankara had laid out specific political and military demands on Sweden and the US, respectively.
"After a year of negotiations, Turkey reached its objectives. In contrast, Hungary has failed to articulate even a single specific demand throughout this entire period," the analyst emphasized.
Did not specify demands for a year
Racz observed that Budapest initially criticized the quality of Swedish democracy and later demanded more respect from Stockholm. "But how was this supposed to result in any change if the demands were never clarified?" he questioned.
According to the expert, the only outcome of Viktor Orban's government delaying Sweden's NATO accession is significant damage to Hungary's reputation within the Alliance.
