Media Hits at Bildt

Start hunting for that exit sign!

Today's Local carries an op-ed titled 'Lundin may have led Bildt to the heart of darkness' in which Leo Lagercranz of Expressen levels corruption charges against the Swedish Foreign Minister. As we have noted in a number of SIJ posts, Carl Bildt has been linked to Lundin's acceptance of brutal Sudanese actions to protect the oil firm's drilling operations. These days, even Aftonbladet is issuing a call for Bildt's resignation.

Here's an excerpt:

-"..the Ethiopian affair is just one of several that are haunting the Swedish foreign minister after his seven years in the Lundin sphere.

Let us go back ten years to the year 2000. It was the year that the former prime minister (1991-1994) and EU envoy to the Balkans (1995) joined the Lundin Petroleum's board of directors. 

The seven years with the Lundin Group that followed would make Carl Bildt a wealthy man. But at what price? 

His time as a 'Lundin man' follows him like a dark shadow that he can’t shake." 

Although Bildt has tried for some time to shrug off these accusations, even the government-subsidized media has turned against him. How long will he last in office?

By Chanah Shapira