For the third time within a few days, Kristersson and his British colleague Keir Starmer met.
On classic ground, 10 Downing Street in London, the two met for bilateral talks. Much focus is still on Ukraine. Regarding today's big news that President Donald Trump may consider participating in a meeting in Turkey, Kristersson says:
We may be speculating with fairly qualified information, he says about the chances that the meeting will actually take place.
If President Trump wants to be on site, I believe that it increases the chances that President Putin will also be there. Everything that leads to unconditional ceasefire – we should take those chances.
Take all chances
Kristersson sees a meeting as an opportunity, as he puts it, "to see if there is any force behind the words to achieve a ceasefire".
Everyone wants peace and has shown it, but it is Russia that now must prove that they do not just push it forward all the time.
Direct negotiations in Turkey were something Putin proposed over the weekend after having dismissed Ukraine's and its allies' call for an unconditional ceasefire of at least 30 days.
President Zelensky was crystal clear yesterday. He takes that opportunity if it exists.
Slow cooperation
According to Kristersson, Europe, the USA, and Ukraine have systematically shown that they want to achieve a ceasefire that can lead to lasting peace.
Further sanctions against Russia have also been raised recently as a countermeasure.
But are there really any trump cards left to further pressure the Russian war chest?
There is always more to do, and I believe that we can come to a point where we could do more together. Our image is that these sanctions have an impact and affect the Russian economy more than they want to admit.
Sweden has driven this through the EU, then we have the problem that Hungary expresses its unwillingness to proceed and extend.
On Monday's meeting, the "coalition of the willing" – about 30 Western countries that have committed to deeper support for Ukraine – was also on the agenda.
A cooperation that, according to Kristersson, is going well, but slowly. It "is being planned on different levels", he says.
Sweden has been very clear about what we can contribute, he continues, and adds that other countries are starting to "specify a bit more, but there is still some left to do".
