The U.S. will host the 2024 NATO summit with all members to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the defense alliance, President Joe Biden announced in his Warsaw, Poland, address Tuesday.
Biden hailed NATO as "the strongest defensive alliance in the history of the world."
"Let there be no doubt, the commitment of the United States to our NATO alliance and Article 5 is rock solid," Biden said in a speech in Warsaw, referring to NATO tenet that an attack on one member is an attack on all. "Every member of NATO knows it. And Russia knows it as well: An attack against one is an attack against all."
NATO was formed after World War II to protect member nations from invasions. Russia's Vladimir Putin has said one of the reasons he ultimately called for his "special military operation" in Ukraine was amid fears the former Soviet Union member would join NATO and put the world defense alliance on Russia's border.
Putin's move might have backfired in an attempt to unwind the NATO alliance, according to Biden. Since Russia invaded, NATO voted to add two additional members: Finland and Sweden.
"He thought he'd get the 'Finlandization' of NATO," Biden said of Putin. "Instead, he got the 'NATOization' of Finland and Sweden."
Hungary, which has maintained diplomatic and economic relations with Russia amid the war, has been holding up the Finland and Sweden NATO admission, along with Turkey.
Hungary's parliament could ratify NATO membership for Finland and Sweden early next month, local media reported Tuesday, citing the preliminary agenda of next week's parliamentary session.
Finland and Sweden sought membership after Russia's invasion of Ukraine last year and have said they want to join "hand in hand," but while most member states have given the applications the green light, Turkey and Hungary have yet to ratify them.
German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock last week called on the two countries to pave the way for Finland and Sweden to join NATO, stating she expects all NATO members to ratify their bids to join the defense alliance "without further delay."
News website HVG.hu said Hungarian lawmakers could start debating the legislation on March 1, with a vote on ratification taking place probably the following week.
A Hungarian government spokesman, parliament's press office and the Hungarian Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to emailed questions for comment.
Prime Minister Viktor Orban said in November that his nationalist government had already decided Hungary would support Finland and Sweden's NATO accession.
The Hungarian government submitted the relevant legislation in July, but parliament, in which Orban's ruling Fidesz party has a two-thirds majority, has not yet brought forth the two bills for debate and approval.
Orban, reelected in 2022 for a fourth consecutive term, reiterated Saturday that being a NATO member was "vital" for Hungary, but said his government would not send arms to Ukraine or sever its economic relations with Moscow.
Information from Reuters was used in this report.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
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