REVISES HEADLINE, ADDS REMARKS FROM EU FOREIGN POLİCY CHEIF
By Talha Ozturk
BELGRADE, Serbia (AA) - Hungary’s parliament voted Monday to approve Sweden's NATO membership, essentially sealing the deal, as it was the only member of the alliance that had not yet given the green light.
The vote took place in the capital Budapest following a meeting last week between Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and his Swedish counterpart Ulf Kristersson.
The vote passed with 188 members for and six against.
With Hungary’s approval, Sweden has obtained the consent of all 31 NATO member states, which is needed for any new members.
"Today is a historic day. The parliaments of all NATO member states have now voted in favour of Swedish accession to NATO. Sweden stands ready to shoulder its responsibility for Euro-Atlantic security,” Kristersson said on X after the vote.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed the Hungarian parliament’s vote.
"Now that all Allies have approved, Sweden will become the 32nd NATO Ally. Sweden’s membership will make us all stronger and safer," he said.
EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said Sweden's ratification makes the bloc and NATO stronger.
''23 EU Member States will now be part of the Alliance. This makes the EU and NATO stronger and fosters the strategic EU-NATO partnership,'' said Borrell on X.
Kristersson announced last Friday that Sweden and Hungary had signed a bilateral agreement under which Hungary will acquire four new Swedish-made JAS 39 Gripen fighter jets, expanding its current fleet of 14 jets.
Kristersson said the agreement would strengthen European security and benefit both countries.
He also praised Hungary for its contribution to NATO's Air Policing operation in the Baltic Sea near Sweden.
Last week, Hungary's ruling Fidesz party proposed voting on Sweden's NATO membership bid on Monday.
Hungary remained the only NATO member that had yet to approve Sweden's membership after Türkiye’s parliament last month approved its application.
Sweden and Finland applied for NATO membership in May 2022 following the start of Russia's war on Ukraine that February.
Finland joined the alliance as its 31st member last April.
The move has long been opposed by Russia, which says it started the Ukraine war in part to avoid any expansion of NATO, but the effect seems to have been the opposite.
Ukraine has also expressed its wish to join NATO, but that only seems possible after the war there ends, and perhaps not even then.