Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has said that he is calling on the parliament to vote for Sweden's accession to NATO as soon as possible.
He said this on his Twitter account after a telephone conversation with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg.
Hungary remains the only NATO country that has not yet ratified Sweden's accession to the alliance.
The day before, on January 23, the Turkish parliament, which along with Hungary had blocked the Swedish application, approved the country's accession to NATO.
On the same day, it was confirmed by President Recep Tayyip Erdogan's signature, after which the procedure was completed on the Turkish side.
Finland and Sweden's applications for NATO membership were submitted after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Finland officially joined the alliance in April 2023. Initially, Turkey demanded that Sweden extradite Kurdish activists and Turkish oppositionists who had been granted asylum in the country. As a result, the Swedish authorities lifted restrictions on arms exports to Turkey in order to approve its application.
Background. As reported, the Turkish parliament approved Sweden's accession to NATO. In return, the country will receive approval from U.S. congressmen to sell it F-16 Block 70 fighters.