It's On: Sweden Cancels Arms Agreement - Saudi Arabia Pulls Out Ambassador

SWEDEN Abba performing Ring, Ring. (C) 1973 Polar Music International AB https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TL0EoXdpOqg Eat Your Greens, Stefan -- Sweden calls off SaudiArabia arms deal over human rights. Yeah, right. What's really going on here? Probably some quiet deal. Diplomatic stand-off denied. http://sputniknews.com/politics/20150310/1019318269.html#ixzz3U14IabW -- Sweden vs SaudiArabia  It's On! Annika Söder meeting with ambassador / Saudi informed no arms deal. Saudi's recalled their ambassador.  Unknown if he remains in country.  ........................................................................... GOOGLE TRANSLATE AFTONBLADET Saudi Arabia calls its ambassador Saudi conflict escalates. Saudi Arabia has called its ambassador from Stockholm, Aftonbladet can reveal. Saudi Arabia called yesterday its ambassador in Stockholm, Ibrahim bin Saad bin Ibrahim Al-Brahim, according to data Aftonbladet. - It is in this diplomatic game announced as a backlash from the Saudi side. There is an escalation of the situation, said a source familiar with. Foreign Minister Wallström's press secretary Eric Boman confirm: - UD learned yesterday informed that Saudi Arabia called its ambassador. If he remains in the country or not I do not know. Kabinetssekreterare [Cabinet Secretary] Annika Söder had after telling a meeting with the ambassador yesterday. - It was to inform that the MOU t (CMAA, editor's note) on military cooperation would be terminated. At the same meeting, we performed also From the Saudi embassy would not say anything. - I can not give any comments. It can only be the ambassador himself do, says an assistant at the ambassador's office. He is in Sweden? - No comments. Is there anyone among you who can comment? - No. Yesterday afternoon, Saudi ambassador told that Sweden cancels military cooperation agreement with Saudiarbien. It all took place two days after Saudi Arabia stopped the Foreign Minister, Margot Wallström (S) from speaking on the Arab League meeting in Cairo, citing what she said earlier about democracy and human rights in the country. Ibrahim bin Saad bin Ibrahim Al-Brahim, 71, has been the Saudi ambassador in Stockholm since last year. Before that he was Ambassador to the UAE, Tunisia and Egypt. http://www.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/article20448477.ab   Annika Söder  = diplomat & Cabinet Sec. MFA since Oct 2014 Söder originally journalist. source: http://www.aftonbladet.se/nyheter/article20448477.ab … [Swe] Further Annika Söder = diplomat & Cabinet Sec. MFA since Oct 2014 Söder originally journalist. 1982 State Department Rank of ambassador Sec of State for Development Cooperation + Humanitarian Affairs from 2002-06. 2007  appointed Assistant Director-General Food + Agriculture Organization (FAO Later also press + communications + cooperation with civil society + business Söder CEO Dag Hammarskjöld Foundation, Uppsala (2012) Annika Söder =  daughter of former Foreign Minister and the center conductor Karin Söder     Married to retired Ambassador Anders Bjurner [Wikipedia] COMMENT Quite enjoying the Sweden diplomatic and commercial fiasco, although I have nothing against Sweden itself.  It's the politicians in excruciating positions that I really enjoy. It looks like Sweden has called off the deal, informing the Saudi Arabia ambassador, who has been recalled by his country. Stefan Lofven has probably aged considerably in the last 48 hours or however long this drama's been playing out.  He would have had pressure from corporate types bearing down on him, on the one hand, and fellow politicians spitting the dummy and applying as much (if not more) pressure, on the other.  More pressure was probably felt from fellow politicians, because if the Greens had quit the government (as I understand they threatened to do), it would have been all over for the SDP (who struggled to form a government).  Not sure what next step would have been in that event.  Maybe another deal like they had at Christmas, or maybe another election? The Green party: Ideology Green politics Soft euroscepticism Feminism Political position Centre-left Just as I was wondering how Avigdor Leiberman was taking this (as in, is he in stitches), I came across this Jewish Press article: Sweden Rips Up Saudi Military Deal After Cairo Spat Over Human Rights http://www.jewishpress.com/news/breaking-news/sweden-rips-up-saudi-military-deal-after-cairo-spat-over-human-rights/2015/03/11/ Was going to do a Jewish Press screen grab of text insert here re Margot Walstrom. Margot rejected again by a Middle Eastern country ... But I noticed you need permission & I couldn't be stuffed e-mailing to do that one tiny thing. Do like the in your face, no mincing words, Jewish approach:   "So Wallstrom was snubbed one more time ...". Yep.  Wallstrom's in a pickle again.  ........................................................................... Someone else who doesn't mice words is this fella: Lord High's tweets are always outrageous, attention grabbing and mostly very, very funny ... But occasionally, they turn a little weird and I think: 'Mein Gott, did he just say that?', he's going to get himself arrested or something. Not because I think he should be, but because I guess I imagine a far more authoritarian climate than it is.  Maybe it's reading all that surveillance, NSA, Five Eye and cable intercept stuff that's done my head in, but I just imagine the Stasi coming down on his twitterverse fun in no time, if he's not careful. [Hoping this post makes sense.  Bit scattered right now.   Too much messing around with info., I think.]

'Arab League backs Saudi silencing of Sweden' (The Local)

Arab League backs Saudi silencing of Sweden Published: 10 Mar 2015 14:06 GMT+01:00 Facebook Twitter Google+ reddit Arab foreign ministers have criticized Sweden's comments about Saudi Arabia while the EU has expressed regret after Sweden's foreign minister Margot Wallström accused the oil rich nation of blocking her speech at an Arab League meeting. Margot Wallström said on Monday that Saudi officials had stopped her from making her opening address to the meeting due to her stance on human rights. But Arab foreign ministers later criticised Sweden for its comments about Saudi Arabia. “The ministers have voiced their condemnation and astonishment at the issuance of such statements that are incompatible with the fact that the Constitution of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is based on Sharia,” read a statement issued by the ministers following their Arab League meeting in Cairo and reported by the Swedish media on Tuesday. “Sharia has guaranteed human rights and preserved people’s lives, possessions, honour and dignity. The ministers consider the comments as irresponsible and unacceptable,” the statement added. Saudi rejection a 'punch in the nose' for Sweden Wallström had been invited as an honorary guest to the Arab ministers' meeting in praise of her government's decision to recognise Palestine in October. Her cancelled opening speech - published by the Swedish foreign ministry - mentioned neither Saudi Arabia nor Wallström's feminist foreign policy agenda but stressed women's and human rights. Wallström's press secretary Erik Boman told The Local on Tuesday that the Arab League's statement "should be interpreted as a way of Saudi Arabia trying to save its face". "The statement was made public yesterday, and we knew about it," he said. "It is one of very many statements on different issues released by the Arab League after a meeting - by tradition they do that kind of thing." Earlier in the day, Sweden's Prime Minister said it was right to question Saudi Arabia’s human rights abuses. “Margot Wallström was invited as a guest of honour. Of course it’s a pity it was cancelled but when we see something wrong, like human rights violations, we have to express what we think,” he told Swedish public broadcaster SVT. On Monday Wallström said it was a "shame" that she had been blocked from speaking. "The explanation we have been given is that Sweden has highlighted the situation for democracy and human rights and that is why they do not want me to speak," she told Swedish news agency TT. An Arab diplomat confirmed to the AFP news agency that Saudi Arabia had stopped the Swede from making her opening speech. Meanwhile the EU has expressed concerns over the move. "We regret that the Swedish foreign minister was not able to deliver her speech," European Commission spokeswoman Maja Kocijancic told a press briefing on Tuesday. EU foreign affairs chief Federica Mogherini will speak to Wallström and Arab League chief Nabil al-Arabi "to understand this situation", she added. Wallström has rarely commented on Saudi Arabia but in January she slammed the kingdom's treatment of blogger Raef Badawi, who had been sentenced to 1,000 lashes and 10 years in prison for insulting Islam. Saudi Arabia is a key trading partner for Sweden in the Middle East and Sweden’s government is continuing to work behind the scenes on preparations for a renewal of a controversial cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia, which includes the sale of military arms.  [No, not sale. It is the building of a weapons factory deal, from my understanding.] The Green Party, the junior partner in Sweden’s government coalition, wants to rip up the ten-year-old deal. But the Social Democrat party - of which Margot Wallström is a member - has indicated that it would like to preserve the agreement in some form, although the issue has caused an internal party rift. http://www.thelocal.se/20150310/eu-raps-saudi-silencing-of-swedish-minister COMMENT Amazing that Sweden can think it can have it both ways:  do business and correct, or lecture, an absolute monarchy ruled nation that operates under harsh, religious law. This has certainly shaped up to be quite a diplomatic problem, as well as a Social Democrat party problem.