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London CNN —The European Union is setting up a working group to examine whether frozen Russian assets can be used to rebuild Ukraine. The statement added that part of this work would involve obtaining a “clearer picture” of where Russian state-owned assets are located and their value. “In principle, it is clear-cut: Russia must pay for the reconstruction of Ukraine,” Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said. A senior EU official estimated earlier this month that the European Union and Western allies had frozen more than $300 billion in Russian central bank assets that could potentially be used to rebuild Ukraine. The European Union is also working on a tenth package of sanctions against Russia.

☆ EU seeks to use frozen Russian funds to rebuild Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

OSLO, Feb 14 (Reuters) - The European Union will on Wednesday launch an ad hoc group to investigate how billions of dollars in frozen Russian funds, including central bank reserves, can be used for reconstruction work in Ukraine, the Swedish government said on Tuesday. "The mandate is to contribute to mapping which funds have been frozen in the European Union ... and secondly how to legally proceed to access those funds," Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson told a news conference in Stockholm. "It's Russian tax payers, not all other tax payers, who must bear the cost of the necessary reconstruction work," Kristersson added. Among the key assets will be Russian central bank funds expected to amount to tens of billions of dollars, Ahnlid said. "The EU has never before used frozen funds for the reconstruction of a war-torn country, so we are in a sense chartering new territory," Ahnlid added.

☆ Why Processing Sweden’s Rare-Earth Haul Won’t Be Easy
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Yusuf Khan | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +4 min

The find is adjacent to the company’s Kiruna iron-ore mine, an operation that would eventually be expanded to extract the rare earths plus phosphorus, a critical mineral for fertilizers. The company said it would take 10 to 15 years to start recovering the rare earths. LKAB facilities in Kiruna, Sweden. Also, LKAB reported that its find has a total rare-earth oxide level of 0.18%, a low level of concentration. U.K.-based Pensana PLC aims to mine rare-earth concentrates in Angola, before separating and processing them in the north of England.

[1/2] Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan addresses lawmakers of his AK Party during a meeting in parliament in Ankara, Turkey, January 18, 2023. The main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) also condemned the incidents in Sweden and said they would serve Erdogan's re-election campaign. But Erdogan said this week that Sweden could no longer expect Turkey's support for its NATO bid, and Ankara cancelled a planned trilateral meeting. Washington, Stockholm and Helsinki had hoped Ankara would ratify the NATO bids before Turkey's election. While Erdogan's government backs the Nordics' NATO bid with conditions, his political opponents had been more supportive - before the Stockholm incidents.

☆ Finland’s top diplomat hints at joining NATO without Sweden
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Associated Press | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +4 min

Finland’s top diplomat appeared to suggest Tuesday that the country may have to consider joining NATO without Sweden after Turkey’s president cast serious doubt on the expansion of the military alliance. Haavisto later backpedaled, telling reporters in Parliament that his comment earlier Tuesday had been “imprecise” and that Finland’s ambition to join NATO jointly with Sweden remained unchanged. “But of course there have been raised concerns within NATO on how the (recent) incidents in Sweden will affect the schedule,” Haavisto said. Until now, Sweden and Finland have been committed to joining the alliance together, but Haavisto’s comment to YLE raised concerns that Finland was considering proceeding without its Nordic neighbor. “Sweden respects the agreement between Sweden, Finland and Turkey regarding our NATO membership.

☆ Protests in Stockholm, including Koran-burning, draw condemnation from Turkey
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Permitting this anti-Islam act, which targets Muslims and insults our sacred values, under the guise of freedom of expression is completely unacceptable," the Turkish Foreign Ministry said. The Turkish ministry urged Sweden to take necessary actions against the perpetrators and invited all countries to take concrete steps against Islamophobia. Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom said that Islamophobic provocations were appalling. "Saudi Arabia calls for spreading the values of dialogue, tolerance, and coexistence, and rejects hatred and extremism," the Saudi Foreign Ministry said in a statement. "We will continue our opposition to the Swedish NATO application," Thomas Pettersson, spokesperson for Alliance Against NATO and one of organizers of the demonstration, told Reuters.

☆ Sweden to send infantry fighting vehicles to Ukraine
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-19 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

STOCKHOLM, Jan 19 (Reuters) - The Swedish government announced a new package of military aid to Ukraine on Thursday that will include armoured infantry fighting vehicles and the Archer artillery system. "Ukraine's victory in this war is of almost indescribable importance," Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson told a news conference, adding that Ukraine was fighting for the freedom of all of Europe. Sweden will send about 50 of its tracked and armoured Type 90 infantry fighting vehicles. The government did not specify how many Archer systems it would supply. The focus is expected to be on whether Germany will send its Leopard battle tanks to Ukraine or at least approve their transfer from third countries.

☆ Erdogan aide says time running out to ratify Sweden, Finland NATO bids
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/2] A Turkish flag flies next to NATO logo at the Alliance headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, November 26, 2019. REUTERS/Francois Lenoir/File PhotoANKARA, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Turkey is running out of time to ratify NATO membership bids by Sweden and Finland before it holds elections expected in May, a Turkish presidential spokesman said on Saturday. President Tayyip Erdogan's spokesman, Ibrahim Kalin, said Turkish ratification of the countries' bids depended on how quickly Stockholm fulfils counter-terrorism promises made as part of a deal with Ankara, warning that could take months. Along with Finland, Sweden signed an agreement with Turkey last year aimed at overcoming Ankara's objections to their NATO bids, which were made in May last year and require the approval of all 30 NATO member states. "We have a time issue if they want to join NATO before the NATO summit in June," Kalin added, referring to the Turkish presidential and parliamentary elections, expected in May.

☆ Sweden rejects four extradition requests from Turkey - report
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

The extradition requests were made in 2019 and 2020, before Sweden and Finland signed a three-way agreement with Turkey aimed at overcoming Ankara's objections to the two Nordic countries joining the NATO military alliance. Sweden's High Court decided last summer the four could not be extradited, TT said, leaving the government no choice but to follow its decision. Turkey called a separate decision by the High Court in December to block the extradition of Turkish journalist Bulent Kenes a "very negative" development. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan had singled out Kenes as a person Ankara wanted extradited from Sweden as a condition for Ankara's approval for Stockholm to join NATO. Finland and Sweden both asked to join NATO in May 2022 in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, but their bids require the approval of all 30 NATO member states, including Turkey.

☆ How a Swedish fighter jet managed to catch the un-catchable SR-71 spy plane
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-27 | by ( Peter Suciu | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Only one aircraft even has the distinction of achieving radar lock on the legendary spy plane. It wasn't a Soviet interceptor such as the MiG-25 however, but rather the Swedish-made Saab J37 Viggen fighter that successfully achieved a missile lock and visual contact with the speedy spy plane. The Saab J37 and the Baltic ExpressA Swedish Air Force Saab Viggen arrives at RAF Fairford in July 1993. Andrew Surma/NurPhoto via Getty ImagesThe United States Air Force pilots likely believed the same about the Saab J37 Viggen too. Swedish pilot Per-Olof Eldh scrambled in his Saab J37 Viggen fighter and started the head-on attack protocol.

☆ New Swedish government to cut fuel taxes, boost defence, police in budget
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

STOCKHOLM, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Sweden's new right-wing government will cut fuel taxes and give extra cash to the military and police in its first budget since winning a general election in September, it said on Monday. "The starting point for the budget is to make sure that the Swedish economy can withstand the difficult economic times that are ahead of us," the four parties said in an article in Dagens Nyheter newspaper. The four parties gave no figure for how much the main budget measures would cost or by how much the government would increase spending. However, the government has previously said it would cost around 6.7 billion Swedish crowns ($620 million) next year to cut fuel taxes, with an extra 5 billion to go to defence and around 5.8 billion for maintaining higher levels of unemployment insurance introduced during the coronavirus pandemic. ($1 = 10.8254 Swedish crowns)Reporting by Simon Johnson; editing by Grant McCoolOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Swedish Government Lists Washington, D.C., Mansion for $19.5 Million, Making It City’s Priciest Listing
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Sarah Paynter | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Be the first to know about the biggest and best luxury home sales and listings by signing up for our Mansion Deals email alert. The Swedish government is listing its former ambassador’s residence—a mansion built for the founder of U.S. News & World Report—in Washington, D.C., for $19.5 million.

☆ Turkey's Erdogan to meet Swedish PM Kristersson to discuss extraditions, NATO bid
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Sputnik/Vyacheslav Prokofyev/Pool via REUTERSISTANBUL, Oct 21 (Reuters) - Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan has said he will meet Sweden's new prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, to discuss Stockholm's bid to join NATO as well as the extradition of people Ankara considers terrorists. Sweden and fellow Nordic country Finland launched their bids to join NATO in May in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, but they ran into objections from Turkey. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterErdogan said Kristersson, who took office on Monday, sided with the fight againt terrorism, Turkish broadcaster NTV reported. Erdogan has said Turkey's parliament would not approve the Nordic countries' NATO bids if they do not extradite the people Ankara has requested. Sweden has taken "concrete action" to address Turkey's concerns over its NATO membership bid, Stockholm told Ankara in a letter dated Oct. 6 and seen by Reuters.

☆ Sweden won't share Nord Stream investigation findings with Russia - PM
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

STOCKHOLM, Oct 10 (Reuters) - Sweden won't share findings of the investigation into the explosions of the Nord Stream gas pipelines with Russian authorities or Gazprom (GAZP.MM), Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson said on Monday. A Swedish crime scene investigation of the Nord Stream 1 and 2 gas pipelines from Russia to Europe has found evidence of detonations and prosecutors suspect sabotage. Last week Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin sent a letter to the Swedish government demanding that Russian authorities and Gazprom would be allowed to be involved in the investigation, which Sweden denied. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterOn Monday Andersson said Sweden won't even share the findings of the explosions that took place in the Swedish economic zone, with Russian authorities. However, Andersson said Sweden had no power to stop Russian vessels from visiting the sites of the explosions now that the crime scene investigation was concluded.

☆ Sweden's PM says Nord Stream leaks seen as deliberate acts
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

STOCKHOLM, Sept 27 (Reuters) - Sweden's prime minister said on Tuesday that two blasts had been detected in relation to the leaks of the Nord Stream pipelines with information suggesting likely sabotage, though this did not represent an act of war against Sweden. "We have Swedish intelligence, but we have also received information in our contacts with Denmark, and based on this concluded that this is probably a deliberate act. It is probably a matter of sabotage," Andersson said. "It is not a matter of an attack on Swedish or Danish territory. Europe was investigating major leaks in two Russian pipelines that spewed gas into the Baltic Sea near Sweden and Denmark on Tuesday as Sweden launched a preliminary probe into possible sabotage.

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