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Europe
Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden, shares his perspective on European politics from Stockholm.
What's going to happen after the horrible terrorist attack in Moscow?
Well, obviously, the Russian authorities have great difficulties with it. The US gave advance warning that something could happen in Moscow. It was repeated by several other embassies. That was publicly dismissed by Putin. And, of course, Putin is saying that all of the danger that is there is Ukraine and the West. Nothing else. He has everything under control. And then suddenly, well over 100 people dead. And evidently the security authorities responding fairly slowly. So he has now to adjust his narrative.
Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden, shares his perspective on European politics from Stockholm.
To the surprise of absolutely no one, it's been announced that Vladimir Putin has won the presidential election with a record support and a record turnout. It was, by all standards, a Soviet election. With all of the restrictions that you could think of and the real result, well, it wasn't very much to choose between.
And all of the opposition was outlawed. There was a five year prison sentence of any activities that sort of disturb the election campaign in any sort of way in the view of the authorities. The only thing that should be added is that the activity by the Navalny organization saying, come at noon on Sunday, you stand in the queue and demonstrate by that that you are an opposition. That seems to have been very long queues in the large Russian cities not to speak about at the Russian embassies abroad.
So Soviet style election, but there are still some people in Russia holding the hope out for a better future some point in the time.
Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden, shares his perspective on European politics from Hanoi, Vietnam.
Was the Swedish and Finnish decision to move into NATO, was that driven by fear of Russia attacking them?
Not really. I don't think either of our countries feel any immediate threat by Russian aggression. But what happened when Russia, Mr. Putin, to be precisely, attacked Ukraine was a fundamental upsetting of the entire European security order. And although Mr. Putin's priority at the moment, he’s very clear on that, is to get rid of Ukraine by invading and occupying all of it, you never know where he's going to stop. And this led Finland and Sweden to do the fundamental reassessment of their security policies. Giving up, in Swedish case, we've been outside of military alliances for the last 200 years or something like that.
So it was not a minor step. And that step has now been taken. Finland completed its ratification, has been a member for a couple of months. Sweden has now formally become a member after some hiccups with the ratification process. It's a major change for our two countries need to say. It is a significant strengthening of NATO. It is a significant strengthening of the security in northern Europe and I think also will facilitate a better coordination between the military alliance of NATO and the security alliance of the EU to the obvious advantage of security of Europe and the security of the West.
It's a good day.
From Kyiv, Ukraine, Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden and co-chair of the European Council on Foreign Relations, shares his perspective on the second anniversary of the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Europe in 60 Seconds. This is Carl Bildt in Kyiv, Ukraine. At this time, there's only one question here. This is two years after Mr. Putin unleashed the entire might, military might of Russia against Ukraine, trying to get rid of Mr. Zelensky, effectively get rid of Ukraine. He failed. Ukraine is still standing. Life in Kyiv goes on. But, of course, there's a horrible, brutal attrition war going on in the east and the south part of the country.
And the question is, what will happen?
Resources are being thrown in. Western support is absolutely essential for Ukraine. They are fighting and they are determined that they're going to win this fight. But they are also very much dependent upon the support by the Europeans and by the Americans. And to give that support from the European point of view, it’s essential for our future security. And from the wider point of view globally, in order to send a clear message to others who might be contemplating military expeditions elsewhere in the world, it’s bound to fail.
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Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden, shares his perspective on European politics from the Munich Security Conference:
The big news of the day is, of course, the death of Alexei Navalny. It's a deep tragedy primarily of course for his family. But I would argue even deeper for Russia because Alexei Navalny, he did represent the hope of very many Russians that there was something beyond this repressive, backward looking, imperial, nostalgic, aggressive regime that is now dragging Russia down.
I met him a number of times over the years. I was impressed by his bravery, how thoughtful he was, how determined he was in spite of the difficulties and the resistance that he was well aware of to pursue his vision. And he was firmly convinced that at some point in time, there will be another Russia, rule of the law, parliamentary, non-imperialistic.
And that the wave of young people that he inspired, was inspired till this day that they were going to carry that Russia forward. Now, things are different. We know that the regime tried to murder him before, ultimate responsibility for his death ultimately, irrespective of the facts, which we will never know, rests with the regime. But on this tragic day, let's remember the hope that he represented and remember his conviction that sooner or later, for Russia, that hope can be turned into reality.
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Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden, shares his perspective on European politics from Stockholm.
How are things proceeding with the ratification of the Swedish membership in NATO?
Well, it’s been some back and forth. But now Turkey has ratified and that is important. That has to do with also the agreement with the US on deliveries of F-16s and modification kits of F-16s and deliveries of F-35s to Greece. A major package has been negotiated, so that should be okay. Now, remaining with Hungary. Prime Minister Orban is a slightly unpredictable fellow, but I would guess that he can't hold off for very long. So I would hope, expect this process to be wrapped up within a couple of weeks.
What about British generals and others warning for the danger of a major war in Europe?
There have been a couple of such voices. I don’t think they signify anything that is imminent in terms of dangers, but they signify a concern. What might happen if the war between Russia, the aggression, if that continues? If we don't have sufficient support for Ukraine, if Ukraine doesn't succeed, then that could well be the beginning of a much more major war and a much more severe security challenge for all of Europe. So I think what you hear, from different generals, should be seen in that rather serious light.
Carl Bildt, former prime minister of Sweden, shares his perspective on European politics from the World Economic Forum meeting in Davos, Switzerland.
What are the big geopolitical issues here in Davos?
Well, it's still a lot of Ukraine. As a matter of fact, we had President Zelensky here. There's a large contingent also, even fighters from the front, sharing their experience. But then of course, a deep, deep concern with what's happening in the Middle East. We had both Jake Sullivan and Tony Blinken here yesterday, and there was no disguising the deep worries they have about where developments are heading.
How are things developing with the European support for Ukraine?
I think we are on our way to a solution of that. The Hungarian objection is being diluted somewhat. I think there are good prospects for the Europeans delivering the €50 billion that have been promised for the next few years. There might even be more. We could add the UK money to that. And accordingly, a bright prospect.