Swedish far-right threatens to block the government over EU migrant pact

In the Swedish Parliament, the leader of the far-right Sweden Democrats (SD) party suggested that the party would stop supporting the center-right coalition in power. 

It can spark a political crisis in Sweden when Stockholm leads the EU Council. 

According to Mattias Karlsson, if the government supports the migrant deal as the European Parliament now votes on it, the SD’s partnership and backing may be jeopardized.

“The government must stop the ‘Migrant Pact’ drafted by Swedish Moderate Tomas Tobé in the European Parliament. If not, I find it difficult to see how the basis for our cooperation can be maintained”, Karlsson tweeted on April 21.

In exchange for the center-right government of Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson implementing their policies, particularly on immigration, the Sweden Democrats provide the necessary support. They are not a part of Sweden’s ruling coalition, which includes the Moderates, Liberals, and Christian Democrats.

The ruling coalition would lose its parliamentary majority without the support of the far-right party, which would prevent it from moving on with its legislative agenda two months before Sweden’s term as EU presidency ends.

The prime minister could decide to step down in this circumstance, which would trigger early elections, or he could try to create a new coalition with other parties to keep his parliamentary majority and advance his legislative agenda.

The vote on the migration accord was deemed “historic” by Tobé, who was in charge of how the EU Parliament handled the initial proposal on coordinating asylum and migration policies.

On April 20, the European Parliament passed the EU migration accord with a majority of 420 votes in favor and 130 votes against. The four measures approved by the committee, including the core framework for coordinating asylum and migration policy inside the EU, received support from European MEPs.

The agreement upholds the “Dublin” system, which mandates that those seeking asylum who enter EU territory must first apply for international protection in their nation.

The plans from the Swedish SD, the Belgian Vlaams Belang, the Hungarian ruling party Fidesz, and the Spanish far-right party Vox were all rejected by MEPs in the EU Parliament.

Due to the vote of the Parliament, the EU Council of Ministers can commence final negotiations as soon as member states agree. The Council and Parliament are expected to complete the entire asylum and migration deal by the beginning of 2024.