News about Iran and Sweden

Radio Sweden

”Swedes are sick and tired of extremists on left and right”

Centre Party leader Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist tells Radio Sweden why her party sees Social Democrat Magdalena Andersson as a more likely potential prime minister, rather than incumbent PM Ulf Kristersson of the Moderates. Thand Ringqvist said Swedes are "sick and tired of all the extremists on the left and right side" and her party would not sit in or support a government containing either the Left party of the Sweden Democrats. Earlier in the spring, the Moderates said they would include the nationalist Sweden Democrats in the next cabinet, should their side win September's election.

Radio Sweden

Antisemitism rising in Sweden according to new study

More Swedes have antisemitic attitudes and fewer distance themselves from antisemitic statements, according to a new report from the Living History Forum, a government agency focused on democracy and equality. The report's based on two surveys conducted in 2020 and 2025, where respondents were presented with a number of antisemitic statements and asked to say to what extent they agreed with them. Listen to hear historian of ideas Henrik Bachner, one of the authors of the report, go through some of the prompts given to respondents as well as what they think could be behind the rise.

Radio Sweden

Centre Party leader on Sweden's next prime minister: 'Kristersson has disqualified himself'

The Centre Party will not support Moderate Party leader Ulf Kristersson as Prime Minister as long as he intends to allow the Sweden Democrats into government after the September election. This was stated by the Centre Party leader Elisabeth Thand Ringqvist at a press conference, Tuesday. "Therefore, Magdalena Andersson (Social Democrats) is the most likely cooperation partner", the Centre Party leader says.

Radio Sweden

This is how Swedes view age limits on social media

Six out of ten parents with children aged 8-19 are positive about an age limit on social media, shows a new report from the Swedish Internet Foundation. Among children and young people themselves, the figure is not as high. Last week, the Minister for Social Affairs, Jakob Forssmed, announced that the government wants to move forward with the proposal to introduce a 15-year age limit for platforms like Instagram and Snapchat.

Radio Sweden

Sweden's Foreign Minister in solidarity visit to Gulf states

With missiles once again flying in the Middle East this morning, Sweden's Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard is visiting Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates this week. In a written comment to the news agency TT, she says that she wants to show solidarity with the region, which has been hit hard by the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. The Foreign Minister hopes that the question of how Sweden can contribute to a long-term solution will be discussed.

Radio Sweden

Government wants to be able to seize property owned by suspected spies

The government wants the state to have the power to compulsory purchase properties and plots of land if it suspects that the ownership could pose a security risk to Sweden. With a worsening security situation facing Sweden, the Moderate-led government says it sees risks of properties being used for sabotage, spying or used in other ways that threaten Sweden's security. A government appointed review will look into the legalities of the proposal, Defence Minister Pål Jonson said in a press release.

Radio Sweden

Parties on the hunt for votes from Swedes abroad

Politicians in Sweden are on the hunt to attract votes from the almost a quarter of million Swedes living abroad. In 2022, overseas voters, historically a group with a low-election turn-out, swung the election in favour of the centre-right bloc winning a majority. During the spring, ministers in the Swedish government and representatives from other parties have been to places such as London and Paris to meet Swedes abroad, Swedish Radio News reports.

Radio Sweden

Long wait for child psychiatric evaluations in some Swedish regions

Children in Sweden who need neuropsychiatric evaluations risk getting stuck in long queues in one in three regional health authorities in the country. That's despite the fact that all regions have agreed that children should receive prompt care from Child and Adolescent Psychiatry units within 30 days. The findings come from a survey by Swedish Radio's local channels.

Radio Sweden

Sweden calling on EU countries to ban Russian tourists

Several EU countries, including Sweden, are protesting that hundreds of thousands of Russian tourists are allowed to travel to Europe every year, and yesterday the issue was discussed at an EU ministerial meeting. “We want to put a stop to Russian tourists coming to Europe for beach parties and shopping weekends while Ukrainians are dying on the battlefield,” says Sweden's Migration Minister Johan Forssell, who has taken the initiative for the protest. Sweden and several other countries currently issue very few, or almost no, visas to Russian citizens. At the same time, several Southern European countries, including France, Italy and Spain, grant significantly more visas.

Radio Sweden

Sweden Democrats and Christian Democrats want to change rules to limit independent MPs

The Christian Democrats and Sweden Democrats say they want law changes so that MPs can't quit their parties but still keep their seats in parliament. There are currently nine MPs in the Swedish parliament who were elected as MPs for parties but who have since either quit the party or been thrown out and who have chosen to stay in parliament as independents. Any changes to the rules would need alterations to the Swedish constitution.

Radio Sweden

Migration Agency: Citizenship applicants may be able to wait for new language and civics tests

New, stricter requirements for Swedish citizenship come into force on June 6th, without transition rules for those currently waiting for a decision. They include new rules that applicants will in general have to have lived in Sweden for longer, and also prove that they have knowledge about Sweden and the Swedish language. But Sweden's Migration Agency tells Radio Sweden that applicants who don’t have grades proving their knowledge may have their applications paused, until new citizenship tests are ready to be taken — listen to find out more.

Radio Sweden

Brit in Sweden still hopeful on receiving citizenship before deadline day

With the clock running down towards midnight and the introduction of the new, stricter requirements for Swedish citizenship on June 6th, without transition rules for those currently waiting for a decision, Brit David Hollingsworth is still keeping his fingers crossed his application will be processed in time. Applying for Swedish citizenship three years ago, David Hollingsworth appeared in person at the Migration Agency office in Stockholm last week after getting an email to say it was the last leg of his application process. Radio Sweden spoke to him today, Friday, to find out the latest on his citizenship application.

Radio Sweden

Man accused of torture under former Syrian regime has applied for Swedish residence permit

Swedish Radio's investigative programme Kaliber has discovered that a man accused of torture, rape and killing of prison inmates during the former Syrian regime is walking free in Damascus. He's currently awaiting a decision from the Swedish Migration Board on a residency permit in Sweden. Following Kaliber's revelations, the Syrian authorities are currently looking for the man.

Radio Sweden

New poll has Liberals below parliamentary threshold

According the party preference poll by Statistics Sweden published today, the Liberal Party doesn't make it over the four-percent threshold to stay in the Swedish parliament as it currently gets just 2,5 percent. The centre-left opposition parties also get larger support in comparison with the governing parties and the Sweden Democrats. The difference between the blocs is 12,6 percentage points. The party preference poll is published annually and shows what the election result would have been, had an election been held in May 2026.

Radio Sweden

Takeaway pizza prices hold steady despite VAT-cut

Takeaway pizza hasn't become cheaper despite lowered VAT on takeaways. That's according to a survey by Swedish Radio's local channel P4 Jönköping. VAT on foodstuffs and takeaways was cut in half from 12 to 6 percent on April 1st this year, with the aim of reducing prices for customers. Pizza restaurant owners say wholesale prices have gone up and if not for the VAT-cut, they would have had to raise their prices.

Radio Sweden

The keys to learning a new language from a Stockholm Polyglot

He speaks seven languages and has set up an international community of language enthusiasts in the Swedish capital. Meeting up once a fortnight, Stockholm Polyglots, was created by Swede Jonatan Haile and he wants to inspire people to learn new languages. He tells Radio Sweden how music and social interaction can help you learn a language.

Radio Sweden

Left Party cuts candidates from local elections – praised Hamas

Thirteen Left Party candidates will not be able to stand for municipal elections following revelations by newspaper Expressen about the candidates’ praise of terrorism. Left Party candidates in Helsingborg celebrated Hamas’s attack on Israel in 2023 on the very day the attack was carried out. The candidates concerned were on election lists in the municipalities of Örebro, Sävsjö, Eksjö, Växjö, Landskrona, Halmstad and Helsingborg, party secretary Maria Forsberg told Swedish Television.

Radio Sweden

How Sweden's political parties want to cut transport emissions

More needs to be done if Sweden is to hit its 2030 climate targets, but the parties can’t agree on how to cut emissions from transport. A survey by Swedish Radio News has found that the eight parties in parliament divide into different groups, where the Green and the Left parties want to combine electrification with more public transport and more investment in rail, while several other parties mainly focus on electric cars. The Sweden Democrats stand out in that they are the only ones that do not propose any new subsidy for people wanting to buy electric cars.

Radio Sweden

Public health report: Sexual satisfaction in Sweden varies by age and gender

Women in Sweden are generally more satisfied with their sex lives than men in comparable age-brackets. That's according to a new survey by the Public Health Agency of Sweden in which nearly 16,000 people aged between 16 and 84 were asked about sexual health and reproductive rights. However, the survey also points to continued challenges when it comes to women experiencing unwanted sexual attention and sexual violence.

Radio Sweden

Report: Foreign-born pensioners receive thousands of kronor less every month

The difference in pension between those born abroad and those born in Sweden has increased significantly in recent decades, according to a new report by insurance provider Folksam. For people born in 1957 abroad, the difference amounts to almost SEK 5,700 in their pension as a whole per month before tax compared to those born in Sweden. For people born in 1937, the corresponding difference was only SEK 650 per month. Listen to one of the representatives from the insurance company behind the report and the head of Sweden's pensions agency to hear what's driving the pensions gap.