Pressure from both sides of the Atlantic is growing on Hungary to cast the final vote needed to let Sweden join NATO.
But those around Prime Minister Viktor Orbán are in no rush.
László Kövér, the speaker of the Hungarian parliament and Orbán's close ally, on Thursday apparently ruled out the necessity for an extraordinary session to expedite the Swedish application, which has already been confirmed by the parliaments of all of NATO's 30 other members.
That's despite Orbán having promised NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg just a day earlier that the Swedish accession plan — which he claimed to support — would go through the Hungarian parliament "at the first possible opportunity."
The Hungarian parliament is not in session until next month, and Kövér is in no rush to summon MPs back to Budapest.
"I do not feel that there is any urgency, and I do not think that there is any exceptional situation," he told local media.
Asked if it made him uncomfortable to act as the final holdout, Kövér was adamant. "Someone has to be last."
Orbán is seen as the EU and NATO leader most closely aligned with Russia's Vladimir Putin. Hungary has also bristled at Sweden's criticism over its backsliding on the rule of law — the reason Brussels has blocked billions in EU cash.
"Let's look at the way Sweden has behaved towards Hungary in the past, and in the last few months since their accession has been on the agenda, with what arrogance and negligence they have shown towards us," Kövér said, adding that Sweden has "gone so far in vilifying Hungary, in denigrating the democratically elected government."
Márton Tompos, a Hungarian lawmaker from the opposition Momentum Movement party, criticized Orbán's government for the “childish” approach to Sweden’s NATO bid.
“They miscalculated the whole thing. They expected to get something in exchange from Sweden,” Tompos told POLITICO, adding that opposition parties were trying to collect signatures to ask for an extraordinary session in parliament to finalize the ratification.
Hungary already broke a promise not to be the last to ratify Sweden's NATO bid. The Turkish parliament voted in favor on Tuesday, some 20 months after Stockholm applied to join the military alliance, breaking its centuries of neutrality.
The procrastination in Budapest hasn't escaped Washington's attention.
“I know colleagues on both sides of the aisle share my expectation that Hungary — the final remaining ally to approve Sweden’s accession — will act soon to finish the job," Mitch McConnell, the top Republican in the U.S. Senate, said Wednesday, adding: "Washington is watching."
U.S. ambassador to Hungary, David Pressman, also piled pressure on Budapest to live up to its promise.
"The government of Hungary has been unambiguous and emphatic in its statement that it supports Sweden's accession to NATO. It has been equally clear in its commitment to not be the last to ratify Sweden's accession to NATO," Pressman said on Tuesday.
Stockholm also wants movement. On Thursday Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson suggested a meeting with his Hungarian counterpart in Brussels on February 1 on the margins of the EU leaders' summit.
The Swedish NATO bid, though, wouldn't be the only matter for Orbán to handle at the summit, as Hungary is also threatening to block further EU financial support for Ukraine.
A Western official, granted anonymity to discuss NATO's view on Hungary's latest thinking, said: "We now expect Hungary to finalize its own ratification process without delay."
"It is now high time for Hungary to conclude the remaining steps so that we can welcome our Swedish friends to the Alliance," the German foreign ministry said on Tuesday.