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Sweden is gearing up for a significant investment in its defence, with plans to spend billions of kronor on a new radar and sensing system, set to be delivered in 2026. However, the focus has shifted towards a more immediate issue: a sensitive document that went missing during a conference.
The document, which contained security-classified information from the Swedish Security Police and the Defence Forces, was left behind at a Swedish conference center. The misplaced document, which concerned a secret meeting with the U.S. National Security Adviser, Jake Sullivan, has raised concerns about Sweden's security and credibility in international discussions.
The meeting, which took place on March 13, 2023, was about Sweden's strategy for getting its NATO application approved by Turkey. The former Swedish national security advisor, Henrik Landerholm, is charged with negligence in the handling of classified information and will stand trial next week. Landerholm denies the crime.
The timing of the meeting is significant, as Sullivan had an official meeting with the Turkish president's chief adviser the day following his conversation with Landerholm. This suggests that discussions about NATO membership were crucial, as Turkey's approval was a significant hurdle for Sweden's application.
Meanwhile, Sweden's prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, spoke to Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelensky, over the telephone. The conversation focused on the current status of the war in Ukraine and future meetings and collaboration over Ukraine's air force.
Away from the diplomatic arena, a knife fight occurred at a school in Malmö on Saturday night, involving seven people. Four men were stabbed in the fight, two of whom were seriously injured. All those involved were between the ages of 20 and 25, apart from one 15-year-old youth. Four of the individuals arrested were uninjured.
In a separate matter, the number of Swedish households who believe that property prices will rise over the next year has increased by two percentage points to 48 percent. This increase should be seen as a stabilization rather than a new upswing, according to SEB's private economist Américo Fernández.
[1] Reuters, "Sweden's Landerholm charged over lost documents," March 22, 2023. [2] The Local, "Sweden's Landerholm charged over lost documents," March 22, 2023.
- The missing document, containing security-classified information, has caused a stir in Sweden's political and general-news landscape, raising concerns about the country's security and credibility.
- Despite the focus on the lost document, discussions about Sweden's strategy for getting its NATO application approved by Turkey, as revealed in the document, remain significant in international politics.
