Hungary parliament to meet Monday at opposition request with Sweden's NATO bid on agenda

PHOTO CAPTION: Representational photo — A Swedish Army Ranger stands guard after disembarking a C-130 Hercules transport aircraft after landing on a rural road on the Swedish island of Gotland, June 8, 2022 during Exercise BALTOPS 22. (NATO photo via Flickr)

BUDAPEST (Reuters) - Hungary's parliament will meet on Monday at the request of opposition parties with the ratification of Sweden's NATO bid expected to be on the agenda, a document on parliament's website showed on Thursday.

But it was not clear if ruling Fidesz party lawmakers, who hold a large majority in parliament, would attend the extraordinary meeting, meaning it would not be able to ratify Sweden's bid.

Hungary is the only NATO member that has not approved Sweden's application to join the alliance.

The press office of Fidesz was not immediately available for comment.

Sweden, along with Finland, applied to join the alliance in 2022 after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. But its membership was held up by Turkey and Hungary, leaving the country in limbo and frustrating NATO allies who see Sweden as a key player in ensuring security in the Baltic region.

Turkey's President Tayyip Erdogan signed Sweden's accession documents in late January, leaving Hungary as the last hold-out.

Earlier on Thursday, Orban's chief of staff said Fidesz lawmakers wanted to see steps from Sweden to strengthen confidence before they can approve its NATO bid. He did not elaborate on what those steps were.

Parliament is scheduled to reconvene for a normal session after its winter break in late February.



(Reporting by Krisztina Than and Gergely Szakacs; Editing By Hugh Lawson)