Hungary called Sweden’s position “stupid” after a demonstration in Stockholm where a far-right extremist burned a copy of the Quran. Ankara froze negotiations on approval of Sweden’s entry into NATO.

The desecration of a religious book is “unacceptable,” Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Chatro said during a press conference in Budapest with his Turkish counterpart Mevlut Cavusoglu.

The reference to freedom of speech made by Prime Minister Ulf Kristerson to justify allowing the demonstration is “stupid” according to Chatreau.

“If a country wants to join NATO and is trying to enlist the support of Turkey, then it should probably be a little more careful,” commented the Hungarian foreign minister.

Following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Finland and Sweden filed a joint bid to join the Alliance, abandoning decades of neutrality. Their inclusion requires the unanimous approval of 30 NATO member states, and only Turkey and Hungary have not yet given the “green light”.

Turkey accuses Sweden of harboring Kurdish “terrorists”. Stockholm is currently at an impasse in obtaining the necessary approval from Turkey following a series of anti-Turkish protests in Stockholm and the Quran burning incident.

Budapest, for its part, claims that it “does not object” to the integration of the two countries. “We have a clear position,” Shatro emphasized. “We support NATO expansion, and when parliament reconvenes in February, this issue will be on the agenda and we will resolve it quickly,” he said.

The deadline has been postponed several times due to legislative deadlock, and the opposition accuses the government of obstruction.

Nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban, a close associate of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, is also ambivalent about the war in Ukraine. Although he has condemned the Russian invasion of Ukraine, he continues to maintain close energy ties with Moscow, unlike his EU partners.

RES-EMP source