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Local Sweden
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Local Sweden
Swedish prosecutors deny that spy arrests are linked to journalist held in Turkey
Swedish prosecutors have denied the intelligence service's arrests of a Kurdish representative and a Swedish diplomat are linked to a journalist facing 'terror' charges in Turkey. Advertisement Public broadcaster Sveriges Radio had alleged late on Wednesday that one of the suspects was connected to the case of Swedish journalist Joakim Medin, who is currently in custody in Turkey awaiting trial on a charge of belonging to a "terrorist" group. The Swedish Security Service (Säpo) confirmed to AFP that two people had recently been arrested for "aggravated unauthorised handling of secret information". They had since been released but were still suspects, Säpo said. It declined to disclose any details of the case. Sveriges Radio said one of the suspects in Säpo's case was a Swedish citizen who was a leading representative for Kurds in Northern Syria. The other was a diplomat at the foreign ministry. The broadcaster said it was unclear whether the arrests had been made as a result of a request from Turkey or not. But on Thursday, the Swedish Prosecution Authority published a statement refuting the media reports. "This is an individual case that has no links to other ongoing investigations or legal proceedings, in Sweden or in other countries," public prosecutor Mats Ljungqvist said, noting the investigation was in an early stage. Advertisement Turkey has accused Medin, who works for Swedish newspaper Dagens ETC, of being a member of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), an allegation he has denied. Medin was detained at Istanbul airport on March 27th when he flew in to cover mass protests gripping Turkey. A Turkish court last month handed the 40-year-old an 11-month suspended sentence on charges of insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. In order to persuade Turkey to drop its veto when Sweden applied to join Nato, the countries made a deal that included increased collaboration on "terrorism". At the weekend, Säpo arrested a second diplomat on suspicions of spying. That diplomat was also released but remains a suspect, although the intelligence agency told AFP that was related to a separate investigation. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a Nato meeting in Turkey, Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard confirmed there were two investigations ongoing relating to government employees. "These are serious accusations but I can't say more than that," Stenergard said. Stenergard said she had spoken to her Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan on Wednesday about Medin's case.
Time of India
15-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Swedish spy agency arrests linked to reporter held in Turkey: media
STOCKHOLM: The Swedish intelligence service's recent arrests of a Kurdish community representative and a Swedish diplomat are linked to a Swedish journalist facing "terror" charges in Turkey, Swedish media reported. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The (Sapo) confirmed to AFP that two people had recently been arrested for "aggravated unauthorised handling of secret information". They have since been released but Sapo said they were still suspects and declined to disclose any details of the case. Public broadcaster Sveriges Radio reported late on Wednesday that one of the suspects was connected to the case of Swedish journalist , who is currently in custody in Turkey awaiting trial on a charge of belonging to a terrorist group. Ankara accuses Medin of being a member of the (PKK), an allegation he has denied. Medin, who works for Swedish newspaper Dagens ETC, was detained at Istanbul airport on March 27 when he flew in to cover mass protests gripping Turkey. A last month handed the 40-year-old an 11-month suspended sentence on charges of insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. According to Sveriges Radio, one of the suspects in Sapo's case is a Swedish citizen who is a leading representative for Kurds in Northern Syria. The broadcaster noted that it was not known if the arrest had been made as a result of a request from Turkey or not. In order to persuade Turkey to drop its veto when Sweden applied to join NATO, the countries made a deal that included increased collaboration on "terrorism". The other suspect in the case was a diplomat employed at Sweden's foreign ministry, according to the broadcaster. At the weekend, Sapo arrested another diplomat suspected of spying. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The diplomat was also released but remains a suspect, although the intelligence agency told AFP that was related to a separate investigation. Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a NATO meeting in Turkey, Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard confirmed there were two investigations ongoing relating to government employees. "These are serious accusations but I can't say more than that," Stenergard said. Stenergard said she had spoken to her Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan on Wednesday about Medin's case.
Local Sweden
22-04-2025
- Politics
- Local Sweden
Could a Swedish cardinal become the next pope?
Sweden's first and only Catholic cardinal, Anders Arborelius, is one of the possible candidates to become the next pope after Pope Francis died on Easter Monday. How likely is it that he takes over? Advertisement Who is Sweden's Catholic cardinal? In 2017, Bishop Anders Arborelius was made a cardinal by Pope Francis, joining 252 cardinals worldwide to act as advisors to the pope. Cardinals typically hold the title for the rest of their lives, and those under the age of 80 are part of the conclave, the group in charge of choosing the next pope. Arborelius is 75 years old, so will be able to cast his vote in the conclave's secret ballot, but what are the chances that he takes over from Pope Francis? What about Arborelius? Last year, Arborelius was named one of three possible papal candidates in French newspaper Le Figaro, besides Hungarian Péter Erdő and Italian Pietro Parolin, the Vatican's current foreign minister. At the time, Le Figaro said that Arborelius 'moves in both conservative and progressive circles', with the fact that he comes from Sweden, an extremely secular country, working in his favour. Sweden's former ambassador to the Vatican, Ulla Gudmundson, told public broadcaster Sveriges Radio last year that she doesn't think it's likely Arborelius would take over. 'He's not very well known among the other cardinals who are responsible for choosing a new pope,' she said. 'Everything is possible,' she added. 'He could be seen as a candidate who is a compromise if they're struggling to reach an agreement, but I don't think, despite what Le Figaro writes, that he's one of the absolute top candidates just yet.' Advertisement Who else is in the running? There are a number of possible new papal candidates being floated in the media. The other European cardinals in the running include Mario Grech from Malta and Matteo Zuppi from Italy. Potential non-European popes include Fridolin Ambongo from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Peter Turkson from Ghana, Pietbattista Pizzaballa, the Latin patriarch of Jerusalem, Gérald Cyprien Lacroix from Canada and Luis Tagle from the Philippines. Arborelius told Swedish public broadcaster SVT that he thinks it is 'very unlikely' he would be chosen as the new pope, adding that he expects the role will go to someone from Africa or Asia. It's also likely that the role could go to an Italian – most popes throughout history have been from Italy and the Vatican is in Rome. Bookmakers have Tagle as the most likely to take over with odds of 3:1, followed by Parolin, 4:1 and Turkson, 5:1. If Tagle takes over he would be the first Asian pope, while Turkson would be the first Black pope. If Arborelius became the new pope, he wouldn't just be the first Swedish pope but the first Scandinavian pope, too. The last pope, Pope Francis, was an unexpected choice, so it's not entirely unlikely that the cardinals would choose someone who hasn't been mentioned in the media. Advertisement Would Arborelius say yes if he was chosen? Arborelius told SVT that he had asked Francis to release him from his duties as a cardinal as he wished to return to his monastery in southern Sweden, and said that Francis had agreed to do so, without setting a formal deadline for this to occur. 'So I'm hanging a bit loose now,' he said. Despite this, experts believe that he would still accept the role of pope if he was elected. 'I think he's a traditionalist and would see it as a duty,' church history professor Joel Halldorf told SVT. How is a pope elected? The next pope will be elected by the conclave within the coming weeks. They will vote in secrecy, with the winning candidate requiring over two thirds of the vote. Conclaves usually take a few days. After each vote, the ballots are burned, with black smoke signalling a failure to reach an agreement. Once white smoke emerges from the chimney of the Vatican, that signals a new pope has been elected.
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Europe wants to ready its citizens for war. Will they listen?
Survival guides, stockpiling and mass evacuation drills. Europe is scrambling to prepare its citizens for the growing threat of conflict arriving on its doorstep. Several European nations have been offering sobering guidance in recent months – envisioning garages and subway stations transformed into bunkers and promoting psychological resilience. One overarching message is the need for a change in the population's mentality to become war ready. As NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte told security experts in Brussels in December: 'It is time to shift to a wartime mindset.' It comes as European leaders fear that Russian President Vladimir Putin, emboldened by gains in Ukraine, could try to push further into the continent, while Europe's longtime and powerful ally, the United States, adopts a more hostile stance to maintaining European security, raising doubts over how far it would be willing to intervene should a NATO country be invaded. But questions remain over how effective these contingency plans would really be, and – moreover – whether civilians will take the guidance seriously. The European Commission has urged all citizens to stockpile enough food and other essential supplies to sustain them for at least 72 hours in the event of a crisis. In guidance released in March, the commission stressed the need for Europe to foster a culture of 'preparedness' and 'resilience.' It came as individual countries have also been putting their own guidance in place for emergencies, including conflict. Last June, Germany updated its Framework Directive for Overall Defense, giving directions on what to do should conflict break out in Europe. The document envisions the complete transformation of daily life for German citizens in the event of war. Sweden has issued a survival guide titled, 'If Crisis or War Comes.' The pamphlet was distributed to millions of households in November, after being updated for the first time in six years due to increasing military threat levels. That leaflet instructs Swedes on how warnings would be issued in the event of war, including an outdoor alert system which it says is operational in most areas. 'Go indoors, close all windows and doors and, if possible, switch off the ventilation. Listen to Swedish public broadcaster Sveriges Radio, channel P4 for more information,' the pamphlet instructs. It offers advice on where to seek shelter during an air raid, including cellars, garages and underground metro stations. If caught outside with no immediate cover, it advises to lie on the ground, 'preferably in a small pit or ditch.' Specific advice is given to Swedish citizens regarding attacks using nuclear weapons, telling them to 'take cover as you would during an air raid. Civil defense shelters provide the best protection.' It adds: 'Radiation levels will lower drastically after a couple of days.' It also includes tips on evacuation, how to stop bleeding, dealing with anxiety, and how to speak to children about crisis and war. For Finland – which shares a 1,340-kilometer (830-mile) border with Russia, the longest of all NATO member states – the defense of its sovereignty against Moscow has long been part of the country's psyche. The country has been preparing for the possibility of a conflict with Russia for decades. Since the 1950s, the construction of bomb shelters under apartment blocks and office buildings has been mandatory. But certainly, the Nordic state, which joined NATO in 2023 after decades of nonalignment, has been accelerating its state of readiness since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Two years ago, prompted by Russia's war, the Finnish government took stock of its available emergency shelters, finding it had a total of 50,500 – which could shelter a possible 4.8 million people in a country of 5.6 million. Helsinki's interior ministry also issued new crisis guidance in November, giving readers advice on how to prepare for long power cuts, water outages, telecommunications disruptions, extreme weather events and military conflict. While nations have updated their civilian protection guidance, there remains no guarantee on how much attention individuals will pay to it. Claudia Major, senior vice president for transatlantic security at the German Marshall Fund, told CNN that the advice from the countries must be taken seriously. Major pointed to the need to be prepared for not only a direct military threat from Russia but also what she called the 'grey zone' between war and peace – encompassing lower levels of aggression and hybrid warfare. However, she added: 'The fine line to walk obviously is to increase preparedness without going into alarmism and catastrophizing. We want people to be aware, we don't want them to be freaked out.' For some countries, particularly those caught in Moscow's sphere of influence, the threat from Russia feels more tangible. For others, it's harder to grasp. Major points to Finland – which lost territory to Russia during the Winter War in 1939-40 – and the Baltic nations, which were annexed by the Soviet Union between 1940 and 1991, as countries where the threat from Russia is more embedded in what she called the countries' 'DNA.' 'The existential threat, the fear of being overrun, of disappearing from the map, is very real in the Baltic states. They wonder why other countries don't get it,' she said. 'The Finns, for the entire Cold War period, took defense seriously,' Major added. 'Why are we all going to Finland now and looking at their bunker system and their stocks of medication and their reservist system? They learned from history; nobody is going to help us. We have to do it on our own.' Major named Portugal, Italy and the United Kingdom as countries where the threat from Russia is less present in the national consciousness. Italy, she says, is more concerned with the threat from terrorism and instability from fragile states close to the country's southern border. 'It's far closer to them,' she said. 'It's more of a problem for their stability, prosperity, domestic politics.' The mainland UK, an island nation, was last invaded by a foreign power in 1066, while for many countries in Western Europe, they were invaded during the Second World War. This means living generations have less experience from which to draw on and its civilians may be less likely to take heed of any government advice. 'The question is how do you change the DNA of a country, that's the crucial question,' Major said. The effectiveness of such civilian protection plans also remains unclear. In the past, they have even been met with ridicule. For decades during the Cold War era, the British government provided official information for its citizens to protect themselves against the nuclear Soviet threat. The most prominent British public information source was known as the 'Protect and Survive'' campaign, produced between 1974 and 1980. The series offered information on the dangers of nuclear fallout, instructions to follow in the hours and days after a nuclear attack, and a plan for survival. A pamphlet published in May 1980 included tips on how to build a makeshift fallout room in your home, including a so-called inner refuge to protect from radioactive dust. The campaign became the subject of criticism for offering unrealistic advice and presenting a false sense of optimism in the face of nuclear annihilation. It was long satirized in British popular culture. British researcher Taras Young, author of the book 'Nuclear War in the UK,' told CNN how 'Protect and Survive' was created as a multimedia campaign in the 1970s but was never meant to be made public until there was a high probability of nuclear war. However, after Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher came to power in 1979, Britain's The Times newspaper demanded the government publish the booklets. 'As a result, it was published at a time when there wasn't an imminent threat of attack, so people looked at it through a different lens,' Young said. For that reason, he believes, there was more of a 'cultural backlash' against it, adding that it was even ridiculed in popular British sitcoms. Young pointed to the UK government's advice to whitewash windows to help stop the spread of heat from a nuclear blast as one of the more comical suggestions. Civilians were instructed to 'coat windows inside with diluted emulsion paint of a light color so that they will reflect away much of the heat flash, even if the blast which will follow is to shatter them.' In comparison, Young sees Europe's modern-day advice – including the UK's guidance on preparing for emergencies – as more realistic, and incorporating more of the important psychological aspects, such as how to deal with trauma. For Major, the need to prepare civilians for external threats – particularly in the 'grey zone' area – can't be stressed enough. 'We tend to look at the military (aspect), but we are terribly vulnerable in the grey zone. So what we have to think about is deterrence, defense and resilience. And this particularly implies a greater preparedness of society.' She adds, 'If the society is not willing and not ready to support a war like the Ukrainian society is doing at the moment, we will not prevail.'
CNN
12-04-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Europe wants to ready its citizens for war. Will they listen?
Survival guides, stockpiling and mass evacuation drills. Europe is scrambling to prepare its citizens for the growing threat of conflict arriving on its doorstep. Several European nations have been offering sobering guidance in recent months – envisioning garages and subway stations transformed into bunkers and promoting psychological resilience. One overarching message is the need for a change in the population's mentality to become war ready. As NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte told security experts in Brussels in December: 'It is time to shift to a wartime mindset.' It comes as European leaders fear that Russian President Vladimir Putin, emboldened by gains in Ukraine, could try to push further into the continent, while Europe's longtime and powerful ally, the United States, adopts a more hostile stance to maintaining European security, raising doubts over how far it would be willing to intervene should a NATO country be invaded. But questions remain over how effective these contingency plans would really be, and – moreover – whether civilians will take the guidance seriously. The European Commission has urged all citizens to stockpile enough food and other essential supplies to sustain them for at least 72 hours in the event of a crisis. In guidance released in March, the commission stressed the need for Europe to foster a culture of 'preparedness' and 'resilience.' It came as individual countries have also been putting their own guidance in place for emergencies, including conflict. Last June, Germany updated its Framework Directive for Overall Defense, giving directions on what to do should conflict break out in Europe. The document envisions the complete transformation of daily life for German citizens in the event of war. Sweden has issued a survival guide titled, 'If Crisis or War Comes.' The pamphlet was distributed to millions of households in November, after being updated for the first time in six years due to increasing military threat levels. That leaflet instructs Swedes on how warnings would be issued in the event of war, including an outdoor alert system which it says is operational in most areas. 'Go indoors, close all windows and doors and, if possible, switch off the ventilation. Listen to Swedish public broadcaster Sveriges Radio, channel P4 for more information,' the pamphlet instructs. It offers advice on where to seek shelter during an air raid, including cellars, garages and underground metro stations. If caught outside with no immediate cover, it advises to lie on the ground, 'preferably in a small pit or ditch.' Specific advice is given to Swedish citizens regarding attacks using nuclear weapons, telling them to 'take cover as you would during an air raid. Civil defense shelters provide the best protection.' It adds: 'Radiation levels will lower drastically after a couple of days.' It also includes tips on evacuation, how to stop bleeding, dealing with anxiety, and how to speak to children about crisis and war. For Finland – which shares a 1,340-kilometer (830-mile) border with Russia, the longest of all NATO member states – the defense of its sovereignty against Moscow has long been part of the country's psyche. The country has been preparing for the possibility of a conflict with Russia for decades. Since the 1950s, the construction of bomb shelters under apartment blocks and office buildings has been mandatory. But certainly, the Nordic state, which joined NATO in 2023 after decades of nonalignment, has been accelerating its state of readiness since Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Two years ago, prompted by Russia's war, the Finnish government took stock of its available emergency shelters, finding it had a total of 50,500 – which could shelter a possible 4.8 million people in a country of 5.6 million. Helsinki's interior ministry also issued new crisis guidance in November, giving readers advice on how to prepare for long power cuts, water outages, telecommunications disruptions, extreme weather events and military conflict. While nations have updated their civilian protection guidance, there remains no guarantee on how much attention individuals will pay to it. Claudia Major, senior vice president for transatlantic security at the German Marshall Fund, told CNN that the advice from the countries must be taken seriously. Major pointed to the need to be prepared for not only a direct military threat from Russia but also what she called the 'grey zone' between war and peace – encompassing lower levels of aggression and hybrid warfare. However, she added: 'The fine line to walk obviously is to increase preparedness without going into alarmism and catastrophizing. We want people to be aware, we don't want them to be freaked out.' For some countries, particularly those caught in Moscow's sphere of influence, the threat from Russia feels more tangible. For others, it's harder to grasp. Major points to Finland – which lost territory to Russia during the Winter War in 1939-40 – and the Baltic nations, which were annexed by the Soviet Union between 1940 and 1991, as countries where the threat from Russia is more embedded in what she called the countries' 'DNA.' 'The existential threat, the fear of being overrun, of disappearing from the map, is very real in the Baltic states. They wonder why other countries don't get it,' she said. 'The Finns, for the entire Cold War period, took defense seriously,' Major added. 'Why are we all going to Finland now and looking at their bunker system and their stocks of medication and their reservist system? They learned from history; nobody is going to help us. We have to do it on our own.' Major named Portugal, Italy and the United Kingdom as countries where the threat from Russia is less present in the national consciousness. Italy, she says, is more concerned with the threat from terrorism and instability from fragile states close to the country's southern border. 'It's far closer to them,' she said. 'It's more of a problem for their stability, prosperity, domestic politics.' The mainland UK, an island nation, was last invaded by a foreign power in 1066, while for many countries in Western Europe, they were invaded during the Second World War. This means living generations have less experience from which to draw on and its civilians may be less likely to take heed of any government advice. 'The question is how do you change the DNA of a country, that's the crucial question,' Major said. The effectiveness of such civilian protection plans also remains unclear. In the past, they have even been met with ridicule. For decades during the Cold War era, the British government provided official information for its citizens to protect themselves against the nuclear Soviet threat. The most prominent British public information source was known as the 'Protect and Survive'' campaign, produced between 1974 and 1980. The series offered information on the dangers of nuclear fallout, instructions to follow in the hours and days after a nuclear attack, and a plan for survival. A pamphlet published in May 1980 included tips on how to build a makeshift fallout room in your home, including a so-called inner refuge to protect from radioactive dust. The campaign became the subject of criticism for offering unrealistic advice and presenting a false sense of optimism in the face of nuclear annihilation. It was long satirized in British popular culture. British researcher Taras Young, author of the book 'Nuclear War in the UK,' told CNN how 'Protect and Survive' was created as a multimedia campaign in the 1970s but was never meant to be made public until there was a high probability of nuclear war. However, after Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher came to power in 1979, Britain's The Times newspaper demanded the government publish the booklets. 'As a result, it was published at a time when there wasn't an imminent threat of attack, so people looked at it through a different lens,' Young said. For that reason, he believes, there was more of a 'cultural backlash' against it, adding that it was even ridiculed in popular British sitcoms. Young pointed to the UK government's advice to whitewash windows to help stop the spread of heat from a nuclear blast as one of the more comical suggestions. Civilians were instructed to 'coat windows inside with diluted emulsion paint of a light color so that they will reflect away much of the heat flash, even if the blast which will follow is to shatter them.' In comparison, Young sees Europe's modern-day advice – including the UK's guidance on preparing for emergencies – as more realistic, and incorporating more of the important psychological aspects, such as how to deal with trauma. For Major, the need to prepare civilians for external threats – particularly in the 'grey zone' area – can't be stressed enough. 'We tend to look at the military (aspect), but we are terribly vulnerable in the grey zone. So what we have to think about is deterrence, defense and resilience. And this particularly implies a greater preparedness of society.' She adds, 'If the society is not willing and not ready to support a war like the Ukrainian society is doing at the moment, we will not prevail.'
