EP President Roberta METSOLA and Swedish Prime Minister Ulf KRISTERSSON speak to the press after their meeting in Stockholm. This transcription is a result of an automatic process. Pleas check against delivery.

press point

official visit

METSOLA, Roberta (EPP, MT, EP President)

EU - Sweden (T)

Sweden

Stockholm

president's agenda

KRISTERSSON, Ulf

Joint Press Point by Roberta METSOLA, EP President and Ulf KRISTERSSON, Swedish Prime Minister

SOUNDBITE (English), Ulf KRISTERSSON, Swedish Prime Minister, Welcome President Metsola, dear Roberta. So good to have you here in Sweden, just as some hundred days ahead of the European election. Exciting times in very many different ways and important times as well. We had a meeting and we've talked about the upcoming elections, obviously, and the need for further and increased support in Ukraine, the most important number one topic, for us right now. And we talked obviously also about the risks for interference and disinformation related to these elections. Russia's war in Ukraine has deteriorated the security in all of Europe. At the same time, the information landscape is rapidly changing. And disinformation knows no borders either.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ulf KRISTERSSON, Swedish Prime Minister, So what has been seen in other national elections may also occur in Europe. Let's be aware about that. Antagonists, organisations, states or state sponsored actors. They use political events that national and international crises to spread disinformation. And in Sweden, the most showing example is, as most of you know, the campaign against social services and social services responsibilities to kick to take care for children at risk. If disinformation succeeds, it is polarising and it's harmful to Sweden, but also obviously to Europe as a whole. So my message for the upcoming election is this disinformation depends on people sharing it to have an effect, so don't share it. If something really sounds strange, it's probably is strange.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ulf KRISTERSSON, Swedish Prime Minister, Ask Moldova, For example, about the risk with this. We need to cooperate more closely on this task. EU countries should share information and be as transparent as possible. Psychological defence is therefore an essential part of the modern total defence. It strengthens the population's ability to detect and to resist foreign influence campaigns and defeat disinformation. Finally, the Swedish governmentm I do believe, is prepared for this important task. Before and during the EP election, the Swedish Psychological Defence Agency will analyse foreign electoral influence closely and will make an educational effort to citizen and to other authorities. The Agency will also work closer together with the Swedish Election Authority. Valmyndigheten, as we say in Swedish, empathy and participates in election networks in the EU.

SOUNDBITE (English), Ulf KRISTERSSON, Swedish Prime Minister, Sweden's National Cyber Security Centre is also proactively now preparing to support the Swedish election authorities, cybersecurity work for the 2024 EU election, focusing on safeguarding our electoral process from cyber threats. This is extremely important. Their work will build on lessons learned from the centre's previous support to the election authority. Countries have different experiences, obviously different expertise and different ways of strengthening their psychological defence in cybersecurity. Learning from each other is key. Most of these competencies are national. We need to share experiences, to share expertise with common challenges. The solutions must be developed in cooperation with other countries, not least within EU European Union countries. This is not the time to hope for the best, but we must also prepare for the worst. And that's what we're doing right now. Please, Roberta.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, Thank you very much. Dear Prime Minister, Dear Ulf, thank you for your kind words. It's great to be in Sweden and beautiful Stockholm today. Let me start by congratulating you on Sweden's accession to NATO. This will strengthen your security and European security. I am currently visiting EU Member States in order to increase awareness about the European elections and to encourage people, particularly young people, to vote. I'm here to listen to the concerns and expectations of the Swedish people. This morning I visited a school and I was impressed by the enthusiasm of our younger generation.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, After the 9th of June, there will be 720 members of the European Parliament coming to Brussels, 21 from Sweden. Who those people are and what they stand for is in your hands. They will shape policies and adopt legislation that affect all of Sweden and Europe, that has an impact on all of us. It is up to you to choose to vote, to decide the direction that the European Union will take in the next five years. In the last European elections, 55% of Swedish voters went to the ballot box. My hope is that this time more Swedes will make their voice heard in these elections, especially with a war raging on our borders.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, And our message is therefore this: Do not let anyone else decide for you. Do not take Europe for granted. Investing in the future also means that we must make sure our economy is sustainable and that growth works for everyone. Europe's single market must be improved and strengthened, and we need to remind people of its benefits. Europe cannot fall behind when it comes to innovation. We need to support our competitiveness and our industry. Ultimately, with a strong economy, we can bring prosperity and security because that is strategic autonomy, too. As the Prime Minister said, we also discussed diinformation and the absolute priority to guarantee that the results of the European Parliament elections are not affected by malicious interference. In this area we work very closely with national authorities and it is a responsibility that falls on all of us.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, In February, we ushered in new European laws on transparency and targeting of political advertising, and just two days ago, the Media Freedom Act and the world's first Artificial Intelligence Act were adopted by the European Parliament. These are all legislative tools that will help us safeguard democracy and fundamental rights online. We can be proud of what we have achieved, but we must also be honest about where we could have done better, where we went perhaps too far, too fast, or where we did not do enough, where red tape and over centralisation has pushed people away. We need to underline the need to speak about Europe and that is why I'm here today. Finally, let me also thank Sweden for its strong support to Ukraine. Sweden is one of the biggest per capita contributors of humanitarian aid, of defence material and financial assistance. Our support, and as you said, dear Ulf, for Ukraine has to continue for as long as it takes because Ukraine is not only fighting for its survival, but also for our European values and our security. And we will remain united and stand firmly against Russia's aggression. Thank you.

Q&A, Question regarding on Prime Minister's opinion on military personel in noncombat activities in Ukraine.

SOUNDBITE (Swedish), Ulf KRISTERSSON, Swedish Prime Minister, -

Q&A, Question regarding on disinformation and the means to reach young people.

SOUNDBITE (English), Roberta METSOLA, EP President, -

SOUNDBITE (Swedish), Ulf KRISTERSSON, Swedish Prime Minister, - -