Interview with the Swedish Ambassador in Mexico, Gunnar Aldén.
In the face of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which has led to changes in the situation in Europe in the last two months, the Swedish government seeks to guarantee its national security. The Swedish ambassador in Mexico, Gunnar Aldén, spoke with El Economista about the analysis that is being carried out in his country in the face of a scenario of requesting to join NATO.
The diplomat stressed that the dialogue in his country is ongoing and is expected to conclude on May 13 with the expectation of having a resolution.
“A working group, with experts, representatives from the government and from all political parties, is looking at the consequences of the Russian invasion, the consequences for Sweden’s security policy. This work is ongoing and will end on May 13 and then we are going to make a decision one way or another, but right now we are working on analyzing things, ”he stressed.
He recalled that for the last 200 years Sweden has maintained a non-allied policy in a military organization. At the same time, for many years, it has had a very close cooperation with several countries, including the Nordic countries, especially with Finland, and also with NATO. However, the landscape has changed.
“Before the government did not intend to apply for NATO membership, now we will see after the analysis, but we have not made a decision. Also for years public opinion was against NATO membership and now things have changed, currently around 60% of the population is in favour, that also means a change”.
“Now we are in a completely new situation, it is also an attack against the security policy system that we have in Europe and that is also very important, and this system is based on the principle that each country decides its security policy. ”.
Before the same discussion that his neighbor Finland is analyzing, the ambassador stressed that both countries will make their own decision and acknowledged that their governments are in constant communication regarding the situation in Ukraine and its effects on the region.
Also, the Swedish government is aware that a request to NATO could lead to more tensions with Russia and possible consequences.
“About a possibility of joining NATO we know that it could have consequences and threats from the Russian side, and also against Finland. We have to see first what the Swedish decision would be and if there are consequences then we are going to face them, but surely in the analysis that is being done all these things will be contemplated in the report”.
Support for Ukraine
Ambassador Gunnar Aldén reiterated that his country strongly condemns the Russian invasion, which also flagrantly violates international law. “It is an unjustified invasion, the situation is serious and we have to continue condemning the aggression, we have to defend the international system together.” Regarding the possibility of a peaceful solution to the conflict, he stresses that Russia should completely withdraw its forces from Ukraine, which is a sovereign country.
“We are long-standing partners of Ukraine and we are supporting it. Now we are focusing on humanitarian aid, we are donors and in this area we are working together with Poland to host an international donor conference on May 5 to also try to obtain more humanitarian support for Ukraine. We are also supporting with weapons this time, the last time we did this kind of support was when the Soviet Union attacked Finland in 1939.”
“We are ready to receive Ukrainian refugees, there are already more than 30,000 who have arrived in Sweden, other countries have done a good job to receive them, as is the case with Poland. As we have done before, for example during the crisis in Syria, we had the opportunity to receive many refugees. We don’t know how many people will arrive but the government will do its best to help them. There is solidarity within the European Union to help all Ukrainians in need.”
The ambassador concluded that it is essential for Sweden to investigate possible war crimes committed during these two months of invasion. “Investigations have to be carried out, there must be accountability, that is very important and we see it now with the International Criminal Court that is investigating what has happened in different parts where the Russian forces have been in control. There are horrific examples of that.”