(VOVWORLD) -Finland’s parliament on Monday approved legislation allowing Finland's accession to NATO and plans to complete the legislative process by the end of the term of office of Prime Minister Sanna Marin.
The government wants to avoid any potential political vacuum, with elections due on April 2.
Hungarian President Katalin Novak urged lawmakers on Wednesday to ratify Finland and Sweden's NATO entry as deputies began debating the two NATO bids. The voting is scheduled for March 6 to March 9, but Hungary’s government recently indicated that it might postpone the ratification vote until the second half of the month.
So far, 28 out of the 30 NATO members have ratified both Finland and Sweden’s bid to join the alliance. Only Hungary and Turkey have not yet done so.
Turkish President Recep Tayyip Ergogan has suggested that Ankara may agree to Finland joining NATO, but not Sweden. He criticized Sweden’s refusal to extradite dozens of people allegedly tied to Kurdish militant groups and other critics of his government.