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SWEDEN AND TURKEY

Turkish paper accuses five Swedish politicians of working for PKK

Sweden's foreign minister has protested "inaccurate" claims in the Turkish media that five Swedish politicians represent the Kurdish PKK terror group.

Published: 27 May 2022 16:38 CEST
Turkish paper accuses five Swedish politicians of working for PKK
Swedish Social Democrat MEP Evin Incir has been accused by the Swedish media of representing the PKK terror group in Sweden. Photo: Fredrik Persson / TT

In a statement on Twitter on Friday afternoon, Linde complained that the newspaper reports contained “serious accusations that are wholly unfounded”. 

“Violence, terrorism and extremism have no place in our democratic society,” she said. 

The statement came after Swedish state broadcaster Sveriges Radio reported that the Turkiye Gazetesi newspaper had on Sunday claimed that five Swedish politicians represented the PKK, which is classed as a terror organisation by Sweden, the EU and the US. 

The paper named the Social Democrat MEP Evin Incir, and four other female politicians with Kurdish backgrounds as representing PKK interests in Sweden. 

“I feel extremely hurt and angry over the lies which are being spread and it’s unacceptable,” Incir told the broadcaster. 

The report comes after a delegation of diplomats from Sweden and Finland visited Ankara to discuss how to win the country’s backing for their Nato application. 

According to Turkey’s foreign minister Mevlüt Cavusoglu, the diplomats have been informed of Turkey’s demands and the country is now waiting for an answer. 

Romania and Poland on Friday gave their backing for Swedish and Finnish Nato membership, after a meeting with Turkish diplomats in Ankara.

“Unlike many, I am optimistic… I am convinced that this disagreement will be resolved in the best way, in the spirit of NATO solidarity,” Polish Foreign
Minister Zbigniew Rau said at a joint press conference with his Romanian and Turkish counterparts.

“Sweden and Finland becoming members of NATO is vital to making us stronger,” he said, though adding that their joining “should however benefit
all NATO allies, including Turkey”.

Romania’s Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu said he supported “constructive dialogue”. “We hope to soon have good news concerning Sweden and Finland,” he said.
  

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MILITARY

EXPLAINED: Is national service compulsory in Sweden?

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak recently revealed plans to introduce compulsory national service, referencing Sweden as an inspiration for this. But how does national service work in Sweden, and is it compulsory for everyone?

Published: 27 May 2024 15:19 CEST
EXPLAINED: Is national service compulsory in Sweden?

Although Sweden hasn’t formally been involved in a war since 1814, the country has had some sort of conscription system since the 17th century, excluding a seven-year window between 2010 and 2017, where it was scrapped (or more specifically, “suspended in peacetime”).

Historically, it applied to men only, but was extended to include women in 2010.

Is it mandatory?

Yes and no.

When a Swedish citizen turns 18, they receive a letter from The Swedish Defence Conscription and Assessment Agency asking for information on their health, interests and education, in order to determine whether they should be called up for compulsory military service, officially known as värnplikt (“duty to protect”). 

This document is sent out to all Swedes turning 18 in a given year, and it is mandatory to fill this in, with a few exceptions, such as people who receive benefits from the Social Insurance Agency or residential care homes for children and young people (like HVB-hem or SiS-hem).

Having said that, it is by no means every Swede turning 18 in a given year who actually ends up carrying out military service.

In 2023, the agency collected information on 102,286 young people in Sweden turning 18 that year, with 36,420 called up for testing.

If you don’t turn up to these tests, known in Swedish as mönstringen, you can be sentenced to brott mot totalförsvarsplikten or “crime against the total defence obligation”, which carries with it a fine of 2,000 kronor or up to a year in prison.

These tests at the Swedish Defence Conscription and Assessment Agency are mandatory, and include a theory test, a medical examination, eye and colour blindness tests, hearing tests, as well as an EKG test, pulse and blood pressure tests.

You’ll also need to do a general fitness test and a strength test, as well as an interview with a psychologist to determine whether you’re cut out for military training.

Each test will be scored separately, with your total points determining which course within the Swedish armed forces you’ll be assigned to. You’re allowed to express a preference, although you’re not guaranteed to get a position on the course of your choice. Military training (colloquially known as lumpen) takes between 9 and 15 months, depending on the course.

Not everyone who carries out these tests will actually be called up for military training – in 2023, 6,144 (around 6 percent of everyone turning 18 that year) were assigned a course within the Swedish army, where they were joined by an additional 1,166 individuals who had applied of their own accord. 

Those who pass the tests but who aren’t assigned a position in the army are placed in the reserves, alongside people who delayed their conscription (due to their studies, for example). People in this group could be called up to perform military service if Swedish security is placed on high alert.

What about conscientious objectors?

People who for religious or political reasons do not want to use weapons can apply to carry out weapon-free military service or vapenfri tjänst. 

This doesn’t mean that you won’t have to serve at all, but you could be assigned to civil basic training, which essentially means you’d help ensure that important services like healthcare, childcare or the fire services were still running if there was a crisis.

At the moment, there are no civil basic training courses for conscientious objectors running, although the government has the power to reintroduce these.

There is no programme in Sweden similar to UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s plans for 18-year-olds to dedicate one weekend a month volunteering in the community, for example by “delivering prescriptions and food to infirm people”.

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