Posted on 08/31/2009 2:02:02 PM PDT by ScaniaBoy
The crisis over the Swedish newspaper article claiming IDF soldiers killed Palestinians and snatched their organs refuses to fade away, with Sweden's Foreign Minister denying a report that his country would work together with Italy to pass a resolution condemning anti-Semitism at an upcoming informal meeting of European foreign ministers.
Monday's Haaretz quoted Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini as saying that he and Swedish Foreign Minister Carl Bildt agreed to work to pass a resolution saying that the EU, under the Swedish Presidency, strongly condemned anti-Semitism and would work against its manifestations in Europe.
Frattini, according to the paper, said he would demand that the statement make clear reference to the offensive Aftonbladet article.
Later in the day, however, the Swedish news agency TT quoted Bildt - currently on a trip to Kabul - as denying that he discussed with Frattini a possible resolution to the Israeli-Swedish friction at the upcoming meeting.
According to the news agency, the Swedish foreign ministry's head of communications,. Cecilia Julin, denied Bildt and Frattini even discussed the disagreement, or a possible resolution at the Council of Ministers.
"From the Swedish side we have no plans to handle this question through the informal foreign ministers' meeting in Stockholm," said Julin. She said that Bildt suggested that Frattini's comment must have arisen through an "Italian misunderstanding."
Swedish President Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt also continued to hunker down Monday behind the official Swedish position that this was an issue of press freedom, and that the Swedish government could not take a stand.
Referring to Swedish laws regarding freedom of the press, Reinfeldt said at a press conference in Stockholm, "We cannot be asked by anyone to contravene the Swedish constitution, and this is something we will also not do within the European Union."
Israel has said repeatedly that it was not asking the Swedish government to impinge upon freedom of the press, but rather to condemn a "blood libel" that appeared in a Swedish newspaper.
Bildt, meanwhile, is still scheduled to arrive in Israel on September 11 for a one day visit. Israel, according to diplomatic officials, continues to wait for a condemnation of the article by the Swedish government. If such a condemnation is not forthcoming by the time of Bildt's visit, the officials said, it would cast a serious cloud over the trip and Sweden's efforts to play a significant role in the diplomatic process.
Bildt and Reinfeldt are obviously lying - or can they be that ignorant of our constitution???
Some more hypocrisy and lies from the Swedish flying foreign minister and his velvet eyed PM.
However if a Swedish paper told the truth about Muslim support of terrorism around the world, they would be put on trial for libel. The Swedish government supports Islamic terrorism, but hates Israel.
“The Swedish government supports Islamic terrorism(..)”
- In what way?
I had rather formed the impression that my Sweden is at war with Islamic terrorism (especially in Afghanistan, fighting Talibans).
If you’d like to be on or off, please FR mail me.
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Perhaps like many of our politicians they view the document as "living", something to be bent to political whim. Still, I can't imagine why a FM wouldn't be willing to condemn statements like these.
freedom of the press my derriere
Swedish government shuts down website showing Muhammad cartoons
http://www.jihadwatch.org/dhimmiwatch/archives/010150.php
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