SWEDEN FOREIGN POLICY

Sweden Foreign Policy

Sweden Foreign Policy

Part 2

Problem

I am writing this research paper due to my personal interest about the topic. Foreign policy has always attracted me due to its key position in any country's diplomacy. Foreign Policy IS a major campaign issue for both candidates and voters. Swedish military involvement has especially been the focus of many party platforms, and an issue of concern to a large percentage of the Swedish public. However, foreign policy as a campaign issue is truly a modern phenomenon only rising to the forefront in the 1950s. There are two main reasons for this: first, foreign policy itself was not a major concern to Swedish during the early 1980s, and second, there were no formal political campaigns until 1992. Although it took over a decade to develop, foreign policy is now a key component in any national (and some regional) campaigns.

Throughout history, the making of foreign policy has been considered the province of the ruling elite. In kingdoms or other authoritarian states, this elite consists of the sovereign and his or her family members or close political allies. In democratic societies such as the Sweden, the people are nominally sovereign, but the electorate as a whole is clearly incapable of formulating an effective foreign policy. Thus, even in states where the people have a strong say in government, a small elite is still entrusted with foreign policymaking.

Part 3

Summary

DURING THE 20th century, Sweden was regarded as the archetype of the progressive industrialized country. Managing to find a true third way between capitalism and socialism, Sweden developed one of the world's highest standards of livings, while at the same time achieving a relatively high degree of egalitarianism among its population. The main means of achieving this was a cooperative nature among Swedes and the Social Democratic Party, which has ruled the country from 1932 to date in 2004, with the exception of the periods from 1976 to 1982 and 1991 to 1994.

Sweden is a constitutional monarchy and an ethnically homogeneous state that has produced public policy that seems to depend on certain commonly held values. As Donald Hancock notes, a large majority of Swedes appear to have a high level of respect for constitutionalism and law, veneration for established political institutions, receptivity to institutional and policy reform, and shared values of moderation and pragmatism. The 20th century was a tumultuous period in Europe, with ideologies like fascism and state socialism and everything in between competing for adherents, but none of these movements disrupted the Swedish consensus.

Part 4

Analysis

As Henry Milner has argued, social democracy is a distinctive system of human relations, different in degree from “competitive capitalism,” exemplified by the United States, and “state socialism,” still found in countries such as Cuba, North Korea, and a few others. As such, in Sweden it has been based on the principles of economic well-being, the importance of work, social solidarity, democracy, participation, and access to information.

Sweden's great achievement has been to implement a generous welfare state, based on high rates ...