Hungary President signs Sweden's NATO membership ratification

Budapest: Hungary's President Tamas Sulyok has signed the bill that approved Sweden's accession to the NATO military alliance, the president's office said on Tuesday.

Lawmakers approved Sweden's NATO accession on February 26, clearing the last hurdle before the historic step by the Nordic country, whose neutrality lasted through two world wars and the Cold War.

Stockholm abandoned its non-alignment policy for greater safety within the North Atlantic Treaty Organization after Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022.

The Hungarian vote ended months of delays to complete the security policy shift and followed a visit by Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson during which the two countries signed an arms deal.

Neither Kristersson nor Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom were immediately available for comment.

The remaining formalities, such as depositing accession documentation in Washington, are likely to be concluded swiftly.

Parliament's speaker signed off on the ratification and forwarded the legislation to the president's office for promulgation last week.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's government has faced pressure from NATO allies to fall in line and seal Sweden's accession to the alliance.