Hungary To Delay Sweden’s NATO Application Until October

Hungary’s approval of the Swedish NATO application will now be delayed until at least October.

Speaking with InfoRadio this Thursday, July 13, Zsolt Németh, a member of the ruling Fidesz party in the Hungarian parliament, explained that the summer break is about to begin.

There was no reason to convene the parliament during this break he insisted, according to the Reuters news agency. Németh pointed out that the parliament in Budapest will not resume its work until mid-September, as reported by aftonbladet.se.

President Erdogan agreed to approve Sweden’s NATO membership

Today’s announcement comes after Turkey announced at a meeting in the Lithuanian capital of Vilnius that it would finally approval Sweden’s NATO application.

Turkey’s President Erdogan made this historic decision last Monday 10, after speaking with Jens Stoltenberg, the NATO Secretary-General, and Swedish Prime Minister, Ulf Kristersson.

Vladimir Putin was not happy with Erdogan’s decision

Erdogan’s shift of stance was not very well received in the Kremlin. On hearing the news, Vladimir Putin insisted that Sweden joining Finland in the Alliance was a threat to security along Russia’s borders and promised that he would act accordingly.

Although he didn’t once mention Sweden’s NATO application or the summit in Vilnius, during a speech at today’s TechForum in Moscow, the President highlighted the recent talk about Ukraine joining the Alliance.

After arriving three hours late, Putin suggested that Ukraine becoming a NATO member was another threat to Russia and would only lead to increased tensions globally, according to aftonbladet.se.

The Russian president also warned that Russia may withdraw from the Black Sea grain initiative if Russian demands are not met.

This agreement that currently allows Ukrainian grain and fertilizer to be transported through the inland sea is due to expire next Monday 17.

In a televised speech on state television today, Putin said that he was in contact with the United Nations on the issue. However, he had not seen the message that the UN secretary-general said had been sent to him about a possible compromise to save a decline in the deal.