Nuclear power is a key tool to reduce dependence on Russian oil and gas while helping to provide a cheaper alternative as Europe faces a heating crisis this winter, according to the foreign minister. from Sweden.
Tobias Billström, who took office in October as foreign minister, told Fox News Digital that his government thinks it needs to “step up when it comes to building more nuclear power” because Sweden is a small nation and needs “security, clean and protection”. energy” that is “cheap.
“We want to see more nuclear reactors built,” Billström said during an interview at the Aspen Safety Forum in Washington, DC “We’re talking about doing this with a credit system, but we’re in close collaboration and contact with Swedish industry to be able to finance the construction of new nuclear reactors”.
Nuclear power has proven to be a contentious issue in Europe over the past decade, with Germany moving to close its plants and France planning to build new ones as various nations reconsider the best direction when it comes to nuclear power. Germany’s Minister of State Tobias Lindner recently told Fox News Digital that “resistance against nuclear power” is part of the “DNA of German society.”
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Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström attends a joint press conference amid Russia’s attack on Ukraine, in Kiev, Ukraine, November 28, 2022.
(Reuters/Valentyn Ogirenko/Pool)
Energy prices have skyrocketed due to sanctions imposed on Russia following its invasion of Ukraine and as a result of Moscow slashing gas supplies to Europe, including shutting down its Nord Stream 1 pipeline indefinitely.
Asked if Europe should do more to reduce its energy dependency on Russia, Billström agreed, noting that Russia’s “aggression in Ukraine” showed “exactly how precarious [the] the whole situation is.”
“We should all take very seriously the situation that has occurred with so many countries facing dire straits in terms of household costs due to high energy prices,” Billström said.
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Unlike many other European countries, Sweden is not dependent on Russian gas, but Russia remains a major concern, so much so that Sweden voted to join NATO after decades of neutrality for security reasons.
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken holds a joint press conference with Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billström following meetings at the State Department in Washington, DC, December 8, 2022. (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images)
((Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP) (Photo by SAUL LOEB/AFP via Getty Images))
Stockholm has worked to strengthen its ties with the US and other allies to better protect itself against potential threats, including cyberattacks.
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“We would like to have closer collaboration and cooperation on a bilateral level between the US and Sweden, because we know and believe that we can offer many things for cybersecurity, both with technological resources and with intelligence,” Billström explained. .
Billström noted that the US and Sweden have a “very good” relationship, recounting how he experienced “nothing but goodwill from congressional representatives and the administration” during his visit to Washington DC.
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“I really hope, both as Sweden’s foreign minister” and as Sweden’s incoming holder of the presidency of the Council of the European Union “to maintain those good relations, expand them and see that the US, Sweden and Europe are in a good concerted way,” Billström said.
In this photo taken by a non-employee of The Associated Press and obtained by AP outside Iran, Iranians protest the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini on Oct. 1, 2022, after she was detained by the moral police in Tehran.
(AP Photo/Middle East Images, File)
That partnership extends to address the People’s Republic of China, and Billström noted the need for “close cooperation between the EU and the US on China’s issues.”
The United States and Sweden are also providing a united front against Iran. Stockholm strongly condemned the recent execution of a protester in Tehran after three months of demonstrations following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini.
“We very seriously note that Iran is now embarking on this method to try to quell what is ultimately, you know, a belief in freedom and a will for freedom among these women and girls on the streets of Tehran and other cities.” . Billstrom said.
“Personally, I have been very vocal about the need to have this on the agenda. At the next meeting of the Council of Foreign Ministers in Brussels, Iran will be a specific item on the agenda thanks to the efforts of the Swedish government to get it there.”
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“I think we should stand by those who want to have freedom of expression on the streets of Iran,” he added. “Women and girls are now paying a heavy price for the brutality with which security forces beat them,” she added. “We have to show Iran that this kind of method is unacceptable.”
