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ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Hungary’s minister of foreign affairs said on Friday that his country expects respect from Sweden in order to approve their accession into NATO.
“Some respect would be needed on behalf of Sweden,” Peter Szijjarto, Hungarian minister of foreign affairs and trade, told Rudaw’s Diyar Kurda on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in New York City.
“The Hungarian parliamentarians are really insulted by those statements which are coming from Sweden which are challenging the nature of the Hungarian parliament and the Hungarian parliamentary system,” he added.
Swedish politicians have criticised Hungary and suggested that Budapest was experiencing “political backsliding.”
Earlier this week, Szijjarto expressed his dismay to his Swedish counterpart in a letter in which he rejected Sweden’s “biased, negative, and unjust accusations.”
“You urge our parliamentarians to ratify your accession to NATO while you continue to accuse them of destroying democracy in Hungary," said Szijjarto in the letter.
Sweden, along with Finland, applied to join the military alliance following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Helsinki’s bid was accepted, but Stockholm’s remains at a standstill as Turkey and Hungary have yet to ratify it.
According to Szijjarto, Budapest’s government submitted a “supportive” proposal for Sweden’s NATO bid and it is now up to the parliament to make a decision.
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