The constant questioning of Hungarian democracy from the part of Swedish politicians has resulted in a loss of trust among some Hungarian MPs.Continue reading
The Swedish Foreign minister was not mincing his words when he spoke about his expectations towards the Hungarian Parliament with regards to his country’s NATO membership ratification. Tobias Billström from the center-left Moderate Party had sent an unequivocal message to lawmakers in Budapest that will no doubt surprise some of them.
In an interview for the Polish Rzeczpospolita newspaper he said that the war in Ukraine must go on until the country recaptures Crimea and expressed his opinion that Sweden’s membership will strengthen the security of the alliance. He pointed out that with his country’s accession, all countries bordering the Baltic Sea, except Russia, will be members of NATO.
When asked whether Turkey’s conditions, namely to crack down on Kurdish groups in Sweden, will not pose a dilemma for Sweden’s democratic system, Billström replied by saying that NATO membership can in no way put his government in such a dilemma. At the Madrid summit last year, Turkey signed a memorandum with us and Finland. In his view, there is nothing there that contradicts the Swedish constitution, Swedish law. “We will fulfill everything we have committed to, but nothing more than what is in this memorandum. That is clear” – the minister said.
As to Hungary delaying Sweden’s NATO membership ratification, Billström had resorted to strong language effectively setting out his government’s demands towards Budapest. “When it comes to Hungary, both the foreign minister and the parliamentary delegation that came to Sweden assured that they welcome Sweden’s accession to NATO and understand that through this the security of the alliance will be strengthened. I also want to emphasize that we did not make any commitments to Hungary at the Madrid summit. Hungary, unlike Turkey, agreed that we should join NATO without any additional conditions”, said the Foreign Minister.
The Hungarian parliament should therefore begin the ratification process. This is a clear message from the Swedish government –
said Billström.
The reference to “conditions” is effectively a reaction to the ongoing debate within the governing Fidesz party in Hungary to the fact that Sweden had joined a lawsuit against Hungary in connection with the Hungarian child-protection bill, that aims to toughen sentencing for pedophile crimes, and also restricts radical gender-ideology in educational institutions for minors. Some Hungarian MP’s have taken issue with Sweden had joined the list of a dozen or so countries while at the same time asking Hungary to ratify an expedited accession to NATO. It remains to be seen whether Billström’s rather course message will help MPs to finally make their minds up with regards to NATO expansion, or will play into the hands of those who think Sweden is not behaving like an ally in politics, therefore we should not trust them as a partner in defense.
Twitter Tobias Billström
In the meantime, it is not all plain sailing for Sweden with regards to Turkish ratification either. The leader of the small Patriotic Party (VP) claimed that Sweden’s NATO membership is dangerous for Turkey. Doğu Perinçek, called on the country’s authorities not to allow Sweden to join NATO, saying that
“NATO expansion in any direction is an aggravating threat to Turkey. We consider the admission of Sweden to NATO as extremely dangerous to Turkey’s national unity and territorial integrity. We call on both the government and all members of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey to veto Sweden’s membership in NATO”. According to him, Hungary is also inclined to veto, but Turkey should veto it even if no country of the alliance joins the decision.
Featured Photo: Twitter Tobias Billström
