The ruling Fidesz party has asked parliament to put the ratification of Sweden's NATO accession onto its agenda for next Monday, the first day of the national assembly's spring season.
Máté Kocsis, Fidesz’s group leader, shared the group’s letter to Speaker of Parliament László Kövér on Facebook on Tuesday, and said his party would “support the vote on the ratification bill”. Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said in a speech last weekend that it was “good news that our dispute with Sweden is nearing a conclusion”. Together with the Swedish prime minister, they made important steps to rebuild trust, he said, adding that the Hungarian parliament could ratify Sweden’s NATO accession at the start of its spring session. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, who is scheduled to visit Budapest on Friday for talks with Orbán, said on Monday that he believed there was “a strong will” on Hungary’s part to finalise his country’s NATO accession. Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, has welcomed Kristensson’s decision to visit Budapest, saying the meeting could further the Hungarian parliament’s ratification of Sweden’s NATO membership.