Editing Politics of Sweden (section)

== Foreign relations ==
{{main|Foreign relations of Sweden}}
Throughout the 20th century, [[Swedish foreign policy]] was based on the principle of [[Non-Aligned Movement|non-alignment]] in peacetime, [[Neutral country|neutrality]] in wartime. This principle has often been criticised in Sweden, allegedly being a facade, claiming that the Swedish government had an advanced collaboration with western countries within [[NATO]].

During [[Cold War]] era politics, Sweden was not under the [[Warsaw Pact]] and received only minimal aid from the [[Marshall Plan]]. In 1952, a Swedish [[DC-3]] was [[Catalina affair|shot down]] over the Baltic Sea while gathering reconnaissance. It was later revealed that the plane had been shot down by the Soviet Union. Another plane, a [[PBY Catalina|Catalina]] [[search and rescue]] craft, was sent out a few days later and shot down by Soviets warplanes as well.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Pashakhanlou |first1=Arash Heydarian |title=Swedish Air Power History: A Holistic Overview |journal=Air Power History |date=Fall 2018 |volume=65 |issue=3 |pages=7–14}}</ref>

Sweden is also very active in international peace efforts, especially through the [[United Nations]], and in support to the [[Third World]].{{Citation needed|date=January 2012}}

In 1995 Sweden, together with [[Finland]] and Austria, joined the [[European Union]] which extended the number of member countries from 12 to 15. Membership and its issues are among the most important questions in Swedish politics. Apart from the European Union, Sweden is also an active member of the United Nations and several other organisations such as the [[Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development]] and [[International Monetary Fund]].

In May 2022, Sweden formally applied to join the [[NATO]] alliance. The public opinion in the Nordic region had changed in favour of joining NATO since [[2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine|Russia's Feb. 24 invasion of Ukraine]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=Emmott |first1=Robin |last2=Devranoglu |first2=Nevzat |title=Finland, Sweden apply to join NATO amid Turkish objections |url=https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/finland-sweden-submit-application-join-nato-2022-05-18/ |work=Reuters |date=18 May 2022 |language=en}}</ref>

Soon after his appointment in October 2022, new foreign minister, [[Tobias Billström]], announced that Sweden will renounce "[[feminist foreign policy]]", implemented by the previous left-wing government.<ref>{{cite news |title=Sweden ditches 'feminist foreign policy' |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-63311743 |work=BBC News |date=19 October 2022}}</ref>
Sweden joined [[NATO]] on 7 March 2024.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-03-07 |title=Sweden officially joins NATO, ending decades of post-World War II neutrality |url=https://apnews.com/article/sweden-nato-us-russia-ukraine-8372bc866c8ddcf42d2b8209fa5cd2b1 |access-date=2024-03-07 |website=AP News |language=en}}</ref>