Sign up for our breaking news emails to get real-time breaking news alerts sent straight to your inbox for free
Sign up for free breaking news emails
U.S. National Security Adviser Jake Sullivan said Wednesday that he and NATO officials had warned Hungary against further delaying Sweden’s accession to the military alliance, adding that the U.S. government’s patience with the U. He warned that there are limits.
Lawmakers from Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán’s party on Monday boycotted an emergency parliament that was scheduled to vote on putting Sweden’s NATO membership on the legislative agenda, extending an 18-month delay and forcing Hungarian allies to This angered the public.
The ruling Fidesz party, which holds an absolute majority in Hungary’s parliament, has stalled Sweden’s candidacy since July 2022, claiming that Swedish politicians have told “blatant lies” about the state of Hungary’s democracy. The party insists that the Swedish prime minister must first visit Hungary.
After a meeting of senior NATO security officials at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Sullivan told reporters: “I have heard one security adviser after another say that it is past time for Sweden to intervene and directly address the Hungarian delegation.” ” he said.
Sullivan said he and his colleagues had impressed on Hungary that “it is a matter of credibility and obligation to take the necessary steps” to complete the parliamentary process to approve Sweden’s membership. Ta.
After Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, Sweden, along with neighboring Finland, decided to shelve decades of military non-alignment and join NATO’s collective security umbrella. sought protection under the
Since then, Finland has joined the Transatlantic Alliance. The country, along with 30 other allies, must all agree that Sweden should be part of NATO. Hungary is the only member state standing in its way.
“I’m not going to stand here today and make any specific threats or speculate about future actions, but of course our patience with this is not unlimited,” Sullivan said.
He said the United States “will continue to monitor the situation closely and look forward to a constructive resolution to this issue in the near future.”
Prime Minister Orbán, who has taken a pro-Kremlin stance toward Russia’s war in Ukraine and has broken ties with NATO allies, invited Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson to Budapest and said, “We are committed to security and defense as an ally and partner.” We will discuss future cooperation in the field.” ”
Unless an emergency session of the Hungarian parliament reconvenes to discuss Sweden’s bid, parliament is scheduled to convene for its regular session on February 26.