The Russian Foreign Ministry on Tuesday announced the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) and the Swedish Institute (SI) must immediately stop their activities in Russia.
Johannes Danielsson, Swedish Charge d ‘affaires ad interim in Russia, was summoned on Tuesday and informed about the termination of activities of the two Swedish state organisations in Russia, the ministry said in a statement.
According to the statement, if the Swedish diplomatic and consular offices continue to promote the projects of the SIDA and the SI, their staff members will be expelled.
The Russian ministry said the two Swedish organisations are involved in implementing the “Strategy for Sweden’s support for democracy, human rights and the environment in Russia 2020-2024.
It also said the SIDA and the SI projects in Russia “do not meet the stated goals of promoting the development of bilateral humanitarian and environmental cooperation, but focus on efforts to destabilize the Russian society”