diff --git a/src/strands/tools/mcp/mcp_client.py b/src/strands/tools/mcp/mcp_client.py
index 51a627c7c..fa89d9123 100644
--- a/src/strands/tools/mcp/mcp_client.py
+++ b/src/strands/tools/mcp/mcp_client.py
@@ -114,6 +114,7 @@ def __init__(
         transport_callable: Callable[[], MCPTransport],
         *,
         startup_timeout: int = 30,
+        cleanup_timeout: float = 5.0,
         tool_filters: ToolFilters | None = None,
         prefix: str | None = None,
         elicitation_callback: ElicitationFnT | None = None,
@@ -125,6 +126,8 @@ def __init__(
             transport_callable: A callable that returns an MCPTransport (read_stream, write_stream) tuple.
             startup_timeout: Timeout after which MCP server initialization should be cancelled.
                 Defaults to 30.
+            cleanup_timeout: Maximum seconds to wait for the background thread to stop during cleanup.
+                Prevents hangs when the MCP server process is unresponsive. Defaults to 5.0.
             tool_filters: Optional filters to apply to tools.
             prefix: Optional prefix for tool names.
             elicitation_callback: Optional callback function to handle elicitation requests from the MCP server.
@@ -133,6 +136,7 @@ def __init__(
                 See TasksConfig for details. This feature is experimental and subject to change.
         """
         self._startup_timeout = startup_timeout
+        self._cleanup_timeout = cleanup_timeout
         self._tool_filters = tool_filters
         self._prefix = prefix
         self._elicitation_callback = elicitation_callback
@@ -349,12 +353,22 @@ async def _set_close_event() -> None:
                     if self._close_future and not self._close_future.done():
                         self._close_future.set_result(None)
 
-                # Not calling _invoke_on_background_thread since the session does not need to exist
-                # we only need the thread and event loop to exist.
-                asyncio.run_coroutine_threadsafe(coro=_set_close_event(), loop=self._background_thread_event_loop)
+                try:
+                    # Not calling _invoke_on_background_thread since the session does not need to exist
+                    # we only need the thread and event loop to exist.
+                    asyncio.run_coroutine_threadsafe(coro=_set_close_event(), loop=self._background_thread_event_loop)
+                except RuntimeError:
+                    # Event loop may already be closed (e.g., during interpreter shutdown)
+                    logger.debug("event loop already closed, cannot signal background thread")
 
             self._log_debug_with_thread("waiting for background thread to join")
-            self._background_thread.join()
+            self._background_thread.join(timeout=self._cleanup_timeout)
+            if self._background_thread.is_alive():
+                logger.warning(
+                    "background thread did not stop within %.1f seconds; "
+                    "proceeding without waiting to avoid hanging the process",
+                    self._cleanup_timeout,
+                )
 
         if self._background_thread_event_loop is not None:
             self._background_thread_event_loop.close()
diff --git a/tests/strands/tools/mcp/test_mcp_client.py b/tests/strands/tools/mcp/test_mcp_client.py
index 5eedd1e33..4b7905658 100644
--- a/tests/strands/tools/mcp/test_mcp_client.py
+++ b/tests/strands/tools/mcp/test_mcp_client.py
@@ -516,7 +516,7 @@ def test_stop_with_background_thread_but_no_event_loop():
     client.stop(None, None, None)
 
     # Verify thread was joined
-    mock_thread.join.assert_called_once()
+    mock_thread.join.assert_called_once_with(timeout=client._cleanup_timeout)
 
     # Verify cleanup occurred
     assert client._background_thread is None
@@ -539,7 +539,7 @@ def test_stop_closes_event_loop():
     client.stop(None, None, None)
 
     # Verify thread was joined
-    mock_thread.join.assert_called_once()
+    mock_thread.join.assert_called_once_with(timeout=client._cleanup_timeout)
 
     # Verify event loop was closed
     mock_event_loop.close.assert_called_once()
@@ -549,7 +549,44 @@ def test_stop_closes_event_loop():
     assert client._background_thread_event_loop is None
 
 
-def test_mcp_client_state_reset_after_timeout():
+def test_stop_does_not_hang_when_background_thread_unresponsive():
+    """Test that stop() does not hang indefinitely when the background thread fails to stop.
+
+    Regression test for https://github.com/strands-agents/sdk-python/issues/1732.
+    """
+    client = MCPClient(MagicMock(), cleanup_timeout=0.1)
+
+    mock_thread = MagicMock()
+    # Simulate a thread that never stops
+    mock_thread.is_alive.return_value = True
+    client._background_thread = mock_thread
+    client._background_thread_event_loop = None
+
+    client.stop(None, None, None)
+
+    mock_thread.join.assert_called_once_with(timeout=0.1)
+    # Verify cleanup still occurred despite thread being alive
+    assert client._background_thread is None
+
+
+def test_stop_handles_closed_event_loop():
+    """Test that stop() handles RuntimeError from a closed event loop gracefully."""
+    client = MCPClient(MagicMock())
+
+    mock_thread = MagicMock()
+    mock_thread.is_alive.return_value = False
+    mock_event_loop = MagicMock()
+    mock_event_loop.close = MagicMock()
+
+    client._background_thread = mock_thread
+    client._background_thread_event_loop = mock_event_loop
+
+    with patch("asyncio.run_coroutine_threadsafe", side_effect=RuntimeError("Event loop is closed")):
+        # Should not raise — RuntimeError is caught
+        client.stop(None, None, None)
+
+    mock_thread.join.assert_called_once_with(timeout=client._cleanup_timeout)
+    assert client._background_thread is None
     """Test that all client state is properly reset after timeout."""
 
     def slow_transport():