Russia snubs Sweden summit plans
Published: 1 Jul 09 17:44 CET | Print version
Online: http://www.thelocal.se/20406/20090701/
Sweden's fraught relationship with Moscow has come to the fore on the first day of the Swedish EU presidency as Russia objects to plans to hold a major summit in Stockholm.
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Russian President Dmitry Medvedev does not want the EU-Russia summit to take place in the Swedish capital "and insists that it takes place in Brussels," which Moscow considers more neutral, a Swedish government official told AFP.
The twice-yearly summits normally alternate between Russia and whatever country is holding the EU presidency. The last such summit was held in May in Khabarovsk, in Russia's far east. No date has been set for the next one.
Relations between Stockholm and Moscow are strained as Sweden vocally denounces human rights violations in Russia.
Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt was also harshly critical of Russia's military intervention in Georgia last August in the name of protecting the breakaway Georgian republic of South Ossetia, even making a parallel with
Adolf Hitler.
Neither did Moscow appreciate a Swedish-Polish initiative last year for an EU "Eastern Partnership" which would allow Europe to boost its ties with six former Soviet-bloc states: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine.
The Russians are also waiting for Sweden to approve the North Stream gas-pipe project which would bring Russian natural gas as far as Germany via the Baltic Sea. Stockholm is insisting on environmental guarantees.
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This affects all of Europe, so please Sweden please your zenophobia and blinkered nationalism at home, where it belongs.
Also as you now have the presidency, get into the Euro and stop being a passenger.
Dead fish go with the flow ;)
Putin has nothing on America, and America has nothing on Putin. The clock reads 1982 in the current relationship between the two.
Lets not live in cloud cookoo land here......the west is also brutal in it,s exploitation of other countries, resources and people eg Iraq. Sweden has to just grow up and see realities.........condemn Russia at your peril!
Face it, sometimes planes crash, people get sick, little kids scrape their knees, and it is not America's fault.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Litvinenko_poisoning
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Russian_submarine_Kursk_explosion#Russian_government_response
With regard to the Kursk, I wonder if anyone has seen the most recent Discovery documentary on the incident?
There is quite a lot of evidence to back up the claim of US involvement and the likelyhood that it resulted from practice war-games gone sadly wrong.
Askin Ozcan
Author of The Mini-Submarine
ISBN 978-1-4363-9414-7 (Xlibris)
And all this crying from EU-countries side about dictator regime using torchers agains poor people in Russia, like chechen people, are totally stupid!! I think that first of all u should go to Russia and see some places like Russian south and after u can say if it is fine to be a tough regime.
The same about Georgia. Eu-countries should stop supporting Saakashvili and finally open eyes and blame him for his crimes. At the same time it should be wise to praise Russian efforts to stop massacre in Georgia.
Both Russia and USA are countries that thinks that they are big and powerful and thinks they can just run over smaller countries just because they are russians or americans, like it is their birthright to kill and maime people at will.
Does Sweden really think that Russia gives a damn about its petty little comments? The west has to learn to respect and deal with Russia whether they like it or not. Russia has the trump card which in the very near future will become a huge issue.......Energy resources........and the west needs it.
However, the Ruskies should be made to address any environmental concerns regarding the gas pipeline. If you owned a house and a gas pipeline ran beside, wouldn´t you want the gas pipeline to be as safe and reliable as possible? If you disagree with this then you are truly DUMB!
To many conspiracies and trolls to bother writing any more!
I think Sweden is xenophobic, nationalistic and to a certain degree racist, but I would say in a passive way as a form of self preservation.
I is far worse in other EU countries such as Germany where I would say it is blatant and rude, and in the UK where it makes Brits look plain ignorant.
It could be all excused as being patriotic, but either way, if we are all to get along, we need put aside our roots and beliefs and be democratic when in such a responsible position as President of the EU.
*spiteful child's imaturity*
and sweden needs to stop a pain in the ass 2
russia isn't even a part of europe ..... okay euro-asia whatever
if the two can't decide here to hold the shindig
drag the UN in and let them decide where to hold it.
Possibly they will now have to arrange a meeting to decide where to have a meeting,....
Before they can do that, they will obviously have to have a meeting to decide where the meeting to decide where they will have a meeting will take place,.....
But before they do that they will ......
if Finland would intend to eliminate the swedes who live in Åbo so what would Sweden do? so easy to seat at home "framför datorn" and be sooooo sarcastic
http://cryptome.org/0001/usa-disasters3.htm
You are in need of a serious dose of sanity my man!
To believe that the US had the ability to initiate the earthquake that caused the '04 Indian ocean tsunami,and that it was done to wipe out Muslims so they would not join the fundamentalists.
Please! for your sake, go get some help.
Its easier for you to say framför datorn what is Sweden gona do, quite the contrary Sweden is the most influential country in Scandinavia and the strongest and biggest in military force also the major factors to that is the size difference as in country, economical wise it will be Norway cuz of the oil.
So if Finland did intend to eliminate the swedes who live in Åbo, sadly they would be raped by Sweden if a war was to occur and happily if your one of them i hope your the first to go, and that is when i say thank you god one less idiot in this world wasting my oxygen!
Majorly stated @ hemrylow