On Tuesday, March 5, President of Hungary Tamás Sulyok officially signed the ratification of Sweden's application to join NATO, clearing the last hurdle after 18 months of delays, ABC News reports.
"This is incredibly positive. This decision will make Sweden safer and NATO - stronger," Swedish Defense Minister Pål Jonson commented on the event.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's government first submitted protocols to approve Sweden's entry into NATO in July 2022, but the matter stalled in parliament due to opposition from ruling party lawmakers.
Hungary's decision paved the way for NATO's second expansion in a year, after Sweden and Finland applied to join the alliance in May 2022 following russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, an attack ostensibly aimed at preventing further NATO expansion.
Accepting the new countries requires unanimous support among NATO members, and Hungary was the last of the alliance's 31 members to formally lend its support, as Turkey ratified the request in January.
Tamás Sulyok - the former president of Hungary's Constitutional Court - took office on Tuesday, March 6, and the approval of Sweden's application was the first document he signed as President of Hungary.
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