Turkish MPs have voted in favour of Sweden’s bid to join NATO, leaving Hungary as the sole NATO member yet to ratify the Nordic country’s application.
According to the BBC, the long-delayed vote in Istanbul represents a big step forward on Sweden’s path to joining NATO.
Sweden applied to join in 2022 after Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, but Turkey withheld approval amid a row over what it called Sweden’s support for Kurdish separatists.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg welcomed Turkey’s vote, saying he was counting on Hungary to ‘complete its national ratification as soon as possible’.
The BBC reports that Hungary has accused Sweden of having a hostile attitude. In March, Hungarian government spokesman Zoltán Kovács accused officials in Sweden of sitting on a ‘crumbling throne of moral superiority’. Stockholm has previously accused the Hungarian government of backsliding on the EU’s democratic principles.
However, there have been signs of progress. Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban on Tuesday invited his Swedish counterpart to Budapest for talks, stating in a letter that ‘a more intensive dialogue could contribute to reinforcing trust’.
[Image: Marek Studzinski from Pixabay]