How Sweden's 'child soldiers' became a threat to Norway, Denmark, Finland too

Aug. 15, 2024, 8:12 p.m.

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Nordic countries will increase police cooperation and form a hub in Stockholm in an effort to prevent Sweden’s serious gang crime problem from spreading to Norway, Finland and Denmark, the Swedish government said on Wednesday.

Swedish gangs have long been notorious for their violent activities across Europe. However, this year, a significant development has emerged. 10 Swedish individuals, more than half of whom are minors, have been indicted in Denmark for attempted murder and weapons possession. This has triggered alarm bells and severe criticism in Denmark.

Advertisement Swedish Justice Minister Gunnar Strommer told Reuters that in response, Sweden and Denmark would post police officers in each other’s countries.

“An important reason for this is to be able to share information between our countries in real time,” Strommer said. “Both to be able to identify at an earlier stage which children and young people are at risk of being drawn into these criminal networks, and to prevent it.”

In addition, a Nordic hub of police officers from Finland, Norway and Denmark would be set up in Stockholm. Norwegian and Finnish officers are already there, and the Danes would join in a few weeks’ time.

Swedish gang members have been hired by Danish gangs to carry out violent attacks on rivals, and Danish Justice Minister Peter Hummelgaard revealed that there have been 25 such incidents since April alone.

He labelled them “child soldiers” and said Sweden had a “sick” culture of violence not wanted in Denmark.

Poor integration of immigrants

“The reality right now is that not only Denmark but large parts of the Nordics are feeling the consequences of long-standing failed immigration and legal policies in Sweden, and we take that extremely seriously,” Hummelgaard told a news conference on Wednesday.

Strommer said Denmark also bore some responsibility for its own gangs but agreed with much of the criticism regarding Sweden’s gang problem.

Advertisement Sweden for several decades had some of the Western world’s most generous immigration policies but has tightened them substantially in recent years after a sharp rise in crime largely blamed on poor integration of immigrants.

Sweden has the highest per capita rate of gun violence within the European Union. Last year, 55 individuals were fatally shot in 363 separate incidents in a country with a population of just 10 million. In comparison, the combined total of fatal shootings in the three other Nordic countries was only six.

Authorities report that Swedish gangs, in some instances, have assisted troubled adolescents as young as 14 in escaping youth detention facilities to carry out contract killings in exchange for clothing, money, and drugs.

Advertisement Norway has said Swedish criminal networks are now operating in all parts of the country. The gangs’ presence has become more visible, drawn by higher drug prices and less competition, Norwegian police said in a recent letter to the government obtained by Reuters under Norway’s freedom of information act.

The EU’s open borders have made it easy for criminals to move around the Nordic region, but Denmark tightened surveillance at its Swedish border this summer and began a more active monitoring of passengers arriving by train from Sweden.

Sweden’s centre-right government won the 2022 election on a platform of law and order and reduced immigration, and is ruling with support of the far-right Sweden

Democrats. The nation has welcomed over two million individuals since the beginning of the new millennium; approximately 20% of the population was born outside of Sweden.

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