Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson outlined a possible partnership with France for the construction of new nuclear power plants in Sweden on Tuesday in Paris. “The Franco-Swedish association has good potential in terms of nuclear energy,” he stressed in the courtyard of the Élysée Palace, together with French President Emmanuel Macron, on the occasion of his first trip to the European Union since Sweden took power. rotary. presidency on January 1.
“The new Swedish government is determined to build new nuclear power plants and we are very impressed with the French experience” in this area, he added. Formed in mid-October, this government is based on an unprecedented alliance with the nationalist Sweden Democrats (SD), the big winners of the legislative elections in September.
Sweden “needs to buy two nuclear reactors,” Ulf Kristersson also told Swedish journalists during his trip to Paris. “And I am completely open to France being one of the countries to ensure that Sweden has more nuclear power,” he added.
Sweden currently has six reactors in operation at three different power plants, commissioned during the decade 1975-1985. Several other reactors have been shut down since 1999. The Nordic countries have long been one of the French nuclear industry’s hopes for reviving the civilian atom in Europe. At the end of a work spanning more than 17 years, the French company Areva built the first EPR reactor in Europe in Finland.
Strengthening cooperation in the defense and space sectors
The Swedish prime minister also expressed his desire to strengthen cooperation with France in the defense and space sectors. The two leaders also reaffirmed Europe’s determination to support Ukraine in the 10th month of the Russian offensive as winter approaches in Ukraine. “Ukrainians need our support more than ever,” Emmanuel Macron said. “Ukraine’s victory is existential for Europe and for the whole world,” added Ulf Kristersson.
The French president also reaffirmed his wish that the accession of Sweden and Finland to NATO, currently blocked by Turkey, materialize “as soon as possible”. “You can count on the support and solidarity of France,” he insisted. He also called for a common European “response” to the massive US investment plan, particularly in environmental matters, to defend European industrialists and “jobs.” “We need a ‘made in Europe’ strategy”, he reiterated.
The Swedish presidency of the EU intends above all to emphasize free trade and rule out any protectionist reflexes, enough to fuel tensions at a time when Paris and Berlin want to harden their tone against the United States and its plan (“Law on Reduction of Inflation”). .
Source: BFM TV
