In a letter to Foreign Minister Tobias Billström, the Hungarian Foreign Minister threatens that the Swedish NATO process is in danger. In the letter, which has been partially posted on the Foreign Minister’s Facebook page, he criticizes what is said in Swedish schools about Hungary.
An old video clip from UR – in which democracy is described as declining in Hungary – is widely circulated in the Hungarian media. In a letter to Foreign Minister Tobias Billström (M), the Hungarian government warns that this could have consequences for Sweden’s entry into NATO.
“This will be difficult…”, writes Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó on his Facebook page. He writes that it has been claimed in Swedish schools that Hungary is becoming less and less democratic, something he calls “serious accusations”.
Harsh statements about NATO
“I am quite sure that you understand the contradiction between the two phenomena: you encourage our members of parliament to ratify your entry into NATO, while you accuse them of destroying democracy in Hungary,” he writes to Billström and concludes:
“This contradiction has now become even more apparent and is definitely not helpful to you in getting your continuously stated demand met. I hope you will seriously consider this – finally.”
A spokesperson for Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbáns has hung up the letter as a whole.
UR: “Deeply ignorant”
To TT, UR’s newly appointed CEO Kalle Sandhammar says that it is “in and of itself gratifying to hear that Hungarian politicians are watching UR” but that it is “deeply ignorant to think that Swedish politicians would rule over the content of UR”.
Hungary and Turkey are the only NATO member states whose parliaments have not yet ratified Sweden’s entry into the defense alliance.
Tobias Billström’s press secretary confirms that the foreign minister has read the letter, but declines to comment at the moment.