Thursday 9 March
Sweden: Turkey acknowledges progress towards NATO membership
20:10 | Turkey has acknowledged that both Sweden and Finland are making concessions to overcome its objections to NATO membership, Sweden says. The three countries met Thursday at NATO headquarters over the ongoing Turkish resistance.
Sweden has seen “a good sign” in the talks, says chief negotiator Oscar Stenström. “We see Turkey acknowledging that Sweden and Finland have both taken concrete steps” in the deals they struck last summer to overcome Turkey’s opposition to their NATO membership.
The three countries will soon continue their talks, according to Stenström. When has not yet been agreed.
Talks stalled for weeks. Turkey was angry that Sweden hadn’t banned an anti-Islam protest, among other things.
Turkey believes that Sweden is not yet putting enough obstacles in the way of Kurdish resistance groups. He is willing to consider Finland’s permanent admission to the Western military alliance, he has already hinted several times.
Belarus introduces the death penalty for high treason by officials
17:55 | President Aleksandr Lukashenko of Belarus has signed a law allowing officials and soldiers to face the death penalty for high treason. The law is part of a series of legislative changes to combat “crimes involving extremist and anti-state sentiments”.
Belarus is the only country in Europe that still applies the death penalty. The death penalty for attempted terrorist acts was also introduced last year. Opposition members are also accused of this by the regime.
People in Belarus could also face the death penalty for brutal killings, multiple homicides and terrorist acts resulting in death.
The Swedish government has introduced a bill criminalizing participation in and financing of terrorist organizations. With the anti-terrorism law, Turkey can be persuaded to approve Sweden’s membership of NATO.
The bill, which has yet to be approved by parliament, intends to fill a loophole. It is now difficult to prosecute people for terrorism if they are not connected to a specific terrorist act. Justice Minister Gunnar Strömmer also speaks of an important step towards fulfilling the commitments made by Sweden last year in an agreement with Turkey and Finland.
Sweden introduces a law against participation in terrorist organizations
15:43 | Northern countries have decided to join NATO because of the war in Ukraine. Their applications must be approved by all thirty member states. NATO member Turkey is blocking Sweden’s accession. Ankara wants Stockholm to take tougher action against the Turkish workers’ party PKK, which has been labeled a terrorist by Turkey and the European Union, among others. Hungary has also yet to accept requests from Sweden and Finland. Budapest should agree, but the process is taking longer than expected. NATO accession talks between Sweden, Finland and Turkey will resume on Thursday.
The anti-terrorism law has been in the works since 2017. In that year, an Islamic State (IS) supporter drove a stolen truck into pedestrians in Stockholm. Five people lost their lives. There is still no date for a vote on the bill in the Swedish parliament. The government hopes the legislation can go into effect on June 1.
The Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Plant has been reconnected to the electricity grid
15:07 | The nuclear power plant in Ukraine’s Zaporizhia region has been reconnected to the power grid, reports the Ukrainian energy company Ukrenergo. The electricity supply was damaged by Russian rocket attacks early Thursday.
It was the sixth time since the Russian invasion that all external energy sources were lost, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). Diesel generators are available for this type of emergency. The nuclear power plant, the largest in Europe, needs external electricity to cool the reactors.
The Zaporizhia Nuclear Power Plant was captured by the Russian military early in the war and is still under Russian control. Russia and Ukraine always blame each other for problems with food. The IAEA is very concerned about security and therefore advocates a safe zone around the nuclear complex.
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