Last week, several debaters praised the support of Swedish civil society to help Ukrainian refugees, while the Swedish Migration Board is accused of lack of responsibility. Sweden's attitude towards NATO and the Swedish civil defense was also discussed on the debate pages.
Last week's debate was dominated by the reception of the people who fled Ukraine and reached Sweden. Five moderate local politicians express in Aftonbladet that the government has not learned from the refugee crisis in 2015, but has continued to leave refugee reception to the municipalities.
Marie Söderqvist writes in Expressen that the civilian support for helping the refugees has been admirable, but that The Swedish Migration Agency has broken down in their responsibility by not offering sufficient support to Ukrainians. The criticism has been met with remarks from Mikael Ribbenvik, Director General of the Swedish Migration Board. He writes that the authority does everything to increase its capacity and that it cooperates with both authorities and civil society to simplify reception.
- Sweden can handle such challenges if we help each other and fight for it together, on all fronts, he writes.
Refugees from Ukraine have received a warmer reception than other asylum seekers, according to Farhad Jahanmahan and Cecilia Persson in a debate article in Expressen. They write that the right to asylum risks being eroded when politicians describes the war in Ukraine worse than other humanitarian disasters.
- We need immediate guarantees from the EU and Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson, that the mass refugee directive's solidary reception of refugees from Ukraine will not affect the right of asylum for all refugees, they write.
Sweden's attitude towards NATO has remained high on the agenda. Mathias Mossberg and Sune Olofsson write in Svenska Dagbladet that Sweden should safeguard its neutrality and refrain from joining NATO. According to them, an entry could risk exacerbating the war in Ukraine further. This picture is not shared by the Moderates' party leader Ulf Kristersson, who writes in Dagens Nyheter that the world situation demands that Sweden soon applying for NATO membership.
- Our country must receive the defense guarantees that only a NATO membership can provide, writes Ulf Kristersson.
The need to upgrade Sweden's total defense was also given space in the debate. Per Bolund and Märta Stenevi from the Green Party write in Expressen that the world situation requires filled emergency stocks, reintroduced civil defense duty, upgrading of care and increased climate investments. They also express that the cost of refurbishment must not mean that Swedish aid is reduced, something other parties have suggested.
"The world's poorest people should not pay for Putin's war," they write.
Swedish refugee reception center
The refugee crisis is being dumped on the municipalities - again
Anna Tenje (M), Anna König Jerlmyr (M), Axel Josefson (M), Peter Danielsson (M) and Roger Fredriksson (M), Aftonbladet
The Swedish Migration Agency disappoints refugees from Ukraine
Maria Söderqvist, Expressen
Swedish Migration Agency: We strengthen in every way we can
Mikael Ribbenvik, Expressen
Stop ranking the suffering of refugees
Farhad Jahanmahan and Cecilia Persson, Expressen
Swedish NATO membership
For the sake of Ukraine - Do not apply to NATO now
Mathias Mossberg and Sune Olofsson, Svenska Dagbladet
S no longer has a veto against Swedish NATO membership
Ulf Kristersson (M), Dagens Nyheter
Swedish Civil Defense
Necessary to upgrade the civil defense
Per Bolund and Märta Stenevi (MP), Dagens Nyheter
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