Therefore, the United States contacted Sweden to help the soldiers in North Korea

the The American soldier who is likely to be captured by the North Korean authorities They are hardly in good conditions to return home and their homeland is just behind them. That is because there are no diplomatic relations between the United States and North Korea.

Yesterday, the White House announced that it had contacted two countries to help with the situation: South Korea and Sweden.

The reason for calling Sweden specifically is that Sweden has long been a protecting power for the United States in North Korea. This means that the state takes it upon itself to protect US interests in the country in some respects.

to get to know

Sweden is the European country with an embassy in Pyongyang for the longest time, and until 2001 it was the only European country with an embassy in the capital. North Korea, for its part, has an embassy in Stockholm.

Diplomatic relations were already established in 1973, which is one reason why Sweden has such a good relationship with the country, according to Niklas Swanström, a North Korea expert and head of the Institute for Security and Development Policy, ISDP.

– We recognized North Korea early on, and since then we have had good diplomats on the Swedish side.

“own card”

The last time Sweden helped negotiations between the two countries was in 2018. Then three Americans who had been imprisoned in North Korea for a long time were released.

It is difficult to know how things will play out this time, and whether Sweden will participate in the talks.

– North Korea is a card in itself and that is why many countries choose not to establish diplomatic relations there, says Niklas Swanström.

However, he believes that Sweden has a good reputation when it comes to negotiations with the dictatorship.

– The times when Sweden acted as an intermediary were very successful. When it comes to North Korea, Sweden is perhaps the most internationally appreciated channel, and that’s nothing short of praise for the State Department.