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STOCKHOLM — Sweden’s new prime minister, Ulf Kristersson, on Tuesday named the ministers who will navigate the Nordic country’s myriad challenges, including its response to the war in Ukraine and entry into NATO, as well as spiking energy prices and a looming presidency of the Council of the EU.
Members of Kristersson’s center-right Moderate Party, the biggest of three parties in the incoming minority coalition government, took 13 of 24 ministerial positions, with Tobias Billström, a former immigration minister, named foreign minister.
The party’s previous spokesman for defense issues, Pål Jonson, was named defense minister, while Jessika Roswall, its former spokeswoman on EU relations, was named the new EU minister.
Elisabeth Svantesson, a former employment minister, was named finance minister. Gunnar Strömmer, the Moderates’ outgoing party secretary, was named justice minister, giving him a key role in Sweden’s response to spiking gang violence.
The leader of one of the two junior parties in government, Ebba Busch of the Christian Democrats, was appointed minister for energy and business, while Johan Pehrson, leader of the Liberals, the other smaller governing party, was named minister for the labor market and integration.
Sweden’s new center-right government takes over after winning an election on September 11, displacing the Social Democrats. Incoming foreign minister Billström will have among the heaviest workloads with Turkey still holding up Sweden’s NATO membership and with the war in Ukraine still raging.
Presenting his new government’s policy platform to parliament on Tuesday, Kristersson said Sweden’s support for Ukraine would continue.
“We must provide the greatest possible support to war-torn Ukraine — politically, economically and in terms of security,” he said. “A long-term and coherent program for both civil reconstruction and military support is under development — this includes the transfer of more capable weapon systems.”
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