Tobias Billstrom, who oversaw Sweden’s accession to NATO, has introduced his resignation as overseas minister and retirement from politics, providing no purpose for the transfer.
Billstrom, 50, was first elected to the Swedish parliament in 2002 and was appointed overseas minister in 2022.
In a publish on X on Wednesday, Billstrom mentioned he knowledgeable Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson of his departure “with a combination of unhappiness and delight.”
“I’ll now utterly depart politics,” Billstrom wrote. “Because of this I’m additionally leaving my seat within the Riksdag. What I’ll do subsequent continues to be open,” he added, noting he was “solely 50 years previous” and will make his mark “in different contexts.”
As his greatest achievement over the previous two years, Billstrom listed Sweden’s abandonment of its 200-year neutrality to affix NATO “after a protracted and generally difficult course of.”
Stockholm is now a part of “the core of the international locations that assist Ukraine” and oppose “Russian expansionism,” he added.
Billstrom thanked Kristersson for trusting him to be overseas minister and lead the parliamentary faction of the Average Celebration earlier than that.
In line with Swedish media, Billstrom’s departure comes out of the blue. The dailies Expressen and Aftonbladet each claimed that it was attributable to a “rift” between him and the prime minister. As doable causes, the newspapers named Kristersson’s appointment of a overseas coverage adviser, but in addition battle over Sweden’s place on the Gaza battle, with the prime minister advocating “a extra Israel-friendly line.”
“Tobias Billstrom has had a really shut and good collaboration with the prime minister,” his spokeswoman Anna Erhardt mentioned in response to those experiences. Kristersson’s press secretary Siri Steijer additionally mentioned the experiences had been false and “there isn’t a battle” behind Billstrom’s departure.
Billstrom was first deputy Speaker of the Riksdag from 2014 to 2017. Previous to taking on the Overseas Ministry, he held two different cupboard jobs, first as minister for Migration and Asylum Coverage (2006-2014) and Employment (2010).
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