Sweden’s application for admission to NATO is not urgent, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said on Monday, September 25, accusing Sweden of questioning Hungary’s democratic nature.
Sweden’s application for admission to NATO is not urgent, Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said on Monday, September 25, accusing Sweden of questioning Hungary’s democratic character.
“I am interested in whether there is something urgent that could force us to ratify Sweden’s application to NATO. I do not see such circumstances,” the prime minister told lawmakers.
He added that “there is no threat to Sweden’s security” and that military relations with the Nordic country are not at risk.
Hungary has previously accused Sweden of a “blatantly hostile attitude”, criticizing Stockholm that its representatives are unjustifiably beating Budapest in matters of the rule of law.
In recent weeks, criticism has intensified, with the reappearance of a video from 2019 that points to the weakening of democracy in Hungary.
“Serious accusations and false information are being spread to students in Swedish schools,” Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijártó told his Swedish counterpart in mid-September.
The video about Hungary being shown in Swedish schools “raises this issue to the level of international politics, and we will not accept it,” Orbán said on Monday.
