The Swedish government has totally ruled out moving its embassy in Israel to Jerusalem following a request by the Liberal Party with Foreign Minister Margot Wallström saying a move would contradict European Union convention.
The initial request to move the Swedish embassy to Jerusalem came last Autumn when both the populist Sweden Democrats (SD) and the Christian Democrats both submitted motions and have now been joined in support by Liberal Party foreign policy spokesman Fredrik Malm Sveriges Radio reports.
Christian Democrat Magnus Jacobsson wrote in support of the move last Autumn saying, “This is a peculiar mark that signals that Sweden has a closer relationship with the Palestinian Authority than to the only eastern functioning democracy, Israel.”
A final decision on the proposal is expected this week from the foreign affairs committee with Mr Malm arguing, “Sweden must fully accept and acknowledge that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel and that also means that, at the appropriate time, Sweden should move our embassy to Jerusalem.”
Wallström rejected the calls to move the embassy saying, “it was during the Swedish EU Presidency that we agreed to respect what the UN has said about Jerusalem’s very special status and position, and its call not to open embassies in Jerusalem.”
Shortly after U.S. President Donald Trump led the way in announcing his country’s embassy would move to Jerusalem in 2017, Sweden saw protests in the heavily migrant populated city of Malmö where hundreds of protesters chanted, “We have announced the intifada from Malmö. We want our freedom back, and we will shoot the Jews.”
The protest followed another incident in Gothenburg where three Muslim migrants attempted to set fire to a local synagogue. The three men, from Palestine and Syria, were convicted and sentenced to between 15 months and two years in prison for attempted arson.
While the European Union has taken a stance against member states moving their embassies to Jerusalem, several prominent populists including Austrian Vice-Chancellor Heinz-Christian Strache and Czech President Milos Zeman have long supported the move.