Russia is biggest threat to Sweden - Security Service
Russia is the main international security threat to Sweden. The country’s external enemies may take advantage of the increased risk of extremist violence from Islamists and the far right.
According to Censor.NET, citing Reuters, this was announced on Wednesday by the Swedish Security Service.
"We all have to learn to live with a serious security situation," said the head of the security service, Charlotte von Essen.
On Wednesday, 21 February, Sweden's security service released its annual report on the threats facing the country.
"First and foremost, Russia, but also China and Iran continue to pose the greatest threat to Sweden, and they are working, and to some extent also working together, to change the current security system," von Essen said.
In August 2023, Sweden's security service raised the terrorist threat level to 4 on a 5-point scale following several incidents in which Qurans were burned in Sweden and neighbouring countries, sparking Muslim outrage and provoking jihadist threats. In a statement accompanying the report, the security service noted that threats from far-right and Islamist groups could be fuelled or exploited by Sweden's enemies abroad.
"Foreign states may use violent extremists and other types of organisations and individuals as proxies to carry out security-threatening activities," the statement said.
Fredrik Hallstrom, the head of the Security Service's operations department, said at a press conference that as more Russian spies were expelled from the West, Moscow was changing its tactics and "using more opportunistic methods".
