Italy–Sweden relations
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Italy–Sweden relations refers to the
bilateral relations Bilateralism is the conduct of political, economic, or cultural relations between two sovereign states. It is in contrast to unilateralism or multilateralism, which is activity by a single state or jointly by multiple states, respectively. When ...
between Italy and
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
. The Ostrogoths, originating from the Goths from the current Swedish region of Götaland, were strongly linked, along with the Visigoths, to the Fall of the Western Roman Empire and replacing it with the Ostrogothic Kingdom. But, unlike the Visigothic Kingdom, it was defeated in a short time by the Byzantine Empire. When Italy bombed the Swedish ambulance in Abyssinia in December 1935, protests began. Today (as of 2012) the ties can be described as strong, especially because of
Italian immigrants The Italian diaspora is the large-scale emigration of Italians from Italy. There were two major Italian diasporas in Italian history. The first diaspora began around 1880, two decades after the Risorgimento, Unification of Italy, and ended in the ...
settling in Sweden after World War II while an increasing number of Swedish charter tourists began to travel to Italy. Since the late
1940s File:1940s decade montage.png, Above title bar: events during World War II (1939–1945): From left to right: Troops in an LCVP landing craft approaching Omaha Beach on D-Day; Adolf Hitler visits Paris, soon after the Battle of France; The Holoca ...
, many Swedish
soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
players have been successful in Italian club teams.


Country comparison


History

Historical evidence shows some official encounters between the two countries' Heads of State during the years. In the 1890s The Crown Prince of Sweden and Norway Gustav Bernadotte visited Italy to meet
King Umberto I Umberto I ( it, Umberto Rainerio Carlo Emanuele Giovanni Maria Ferdinando Eugenio di Savoia; 14 March 1844 – 29 July 1900) was King of Italy from 9 January 1878 until his assassination on 29 July 1900. Umberto's reign saw Italy attempt colo ...
. In
1933 Events January * January 11 – Sir Charles Kingsford Smith makes the first commercial flight between Australia and New Zealand. * January 17 – The United States Congress votes in favour of Philippines independence, against the wis ...
King Vittorio Emanuele III met with
King Gustav V Gustaf V (Oscar Gustaf Adolf; 16 June 1858 – 29 October 1950) was King of Sweden from 8 December 1907 until his death in 1950. He was the eldest son of King Oscar II of Sweden and Sophia of Nassau, a half-sister of Adolphe, Grand Duke of Luxem ...
. In
1966 Events January * January 1 – In a coup, Colonel Jean-Bédel Bokassa takes over as military ruler of the Central African Republic, ousting President David Dacko. * January 3 – 1966 Upper Voltan coup d'état: President Maurice Yaméogo i ...
King Gustaf VI Adolf of Sweden and the President of Italy,
Giuseppe Saragat Giuseppe Saragat (; 19 September 1898 – 11 June 1988) was an Italian politician who served as the president of Italy from 1964 to 1971. Early life Born to Sardinian parents, he was a member of the Unitary Socialist Party (Italy, 1922), Unita ...
were photographed in a carriage. Italy and Sweden are both part of the European Union. Italy was one of the six countries that founded it in 1951 by signing the Treaty of Paris, which created the
European Coal and Steel Community The European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was a European organization created after World War II to regulate the coal and steel industries. It was formally established in 1951 by the Treaty of Paris, signed by Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembo ...
. Sweden became a member of the European Union on January 1, 1995, when the country joined the
European Economic Community The European Economic Community (EEC) was a regional organization created by the Treaty of Rome of 1957,Today the largely rewritten treaty continues in force as the ''Treaty on the functioning of the European Union'', as renamed by the Lisb ...
. Sweden and Italy became members of the United Nations respectively in
1946 Events January * January 6 - The 1946 North Vietnamese parliamentary election, first general election ever in Vietnam is held. * January 7 – The Allies recognize the Austrian republic with its 1937 borders, and divide the country into f ...
and
1955 Events January * January 3 – José Ramón Guizado becomes president of Panama. * January 17 – , the first nuclear-powered submarine, puts to sea for the first time, from Groton, Connecticut. * January 18– 20 – Battle of Yijian ...
. Italy and Sweden were both in the
coalition A coalition is a group formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political or economical spaces. Formation According to ''A Gui ...
of 35 countries that fought Iraq in the Gulf War (1990-1991). The coalition was led by the United Nations, and more specifically by the United States of America. The Gulf War was preceded by the occupation of the Kuwait region by Iraq and an embargo declared by the Security Council against Iraq. Italy contributed to the conflict through its air forces and the 225 missions that were concluded were collectively given the name of Operazione Locusta. Sweden held a field hospital and had a role in the disarmament of Iraq, following the war (1991-2003). Italy backed Sweden's bid to join NATO in May 2022.


Economic cooperation

Italy and Sweden are trade partners. Italy is Sweden's 12th most important trade partner. Swedish exports to Italy amounted to 4.24 billion dollars, 2.78% of its total sum in 2020. In the same year Italy accounted for 3.71% of Sweden's total value of imports, with 5.19 billion dollars. In 2020, Sweden represented 1.08% of total Italian exports, amounting to 5.19 billion dollars and 0.99% of total Italian imports, for a value of 4.24 billion dollars. In 2021, Sweden was Italy's 18th commercial partner with regard to Italian exports and the 23rd in relation to its imports. The main sectors for Sweden's imports from Italy are machinery, motor vehicles and trailers, food and metallurgical products. The most important sectors for Italy's imports from Sweden in 2018 were paper and paper products. As of 2016 there were 145 Italian companies operating in Sweden which employ 5153 people. These are mainly commercial branches. Some Italian companies have also shown interest for infrastructural projects regarding, for example, the Swedish railway. In the same year there were 300 Swedish companies operating within the Italian territory and employing almost 36000 people. These include Ericsson, Volvo, H&M and
IKEA IKEA (; ) is a Dutch multinational conglomerate based in the Netherlands that designs and sells , kitchen appliances, decoration, home accessories, and various other goods and home services. Started in 1943 by Ingvar Kamprad, IKEA has been t ...
.


International obligations

In 1980 Sweden and Italy concluded a treaty for the avoidance of double taxation and the prevention of fiscal evasion with respect to taxes on income and capital. Italy signed the treaty on March 6, 1980 and ratified it on June 4, 1982. In Italy, the treaty entered into force on July 5, 1983.


Cultural cooperation

Cultural relations between Italy and Sweden are mainly in the education sector and the arts. In 1941, after the conclusion of a bilateral agreement between the two States, the first Italian Institute for the development of Italian language was created in Stockholm. In 1954 it became the " Italian Institute of Culture in Stockholm" for the mutual transmission and sharing of the two cultures. The creation of this institute was a starting point for future artistic and cultural collaborations. Italy and Sweden have a number of educational exchanges from high school to post-doctoral level and scholarships. The Italian Institute of Culture and the Italian Embassy in Stockholm promote and facilitate cultural ties between Italian and Swedish cultures and organizations Cultural cooperation also is developed through events both in Sweden and in Italy, such as art exhibitions. Sweden exhibits art at the
Nordic Pavilion The Nordic Pavilion houses the national representation of the Nordic countries Sweden, Norway, and Finland during the Venice Biennale arts festivals. Background Organization and building The pavilion, designed by Sverre Fehn, was buil ...
at the Biennale of Venice, which was built in 1962.


Scientific cooperation

In 2014 an Italy-Sweden Joint Committee signed the 2014-2017 Executive Programme of Scientific and Technological Cooperation which regards Italian-Swedish partnership in science and technology in relation to the economy, the society and the culture of the two countries. The Committee approved five financed projects on areas of common interest, such as
Cultural Heritage Cultural heritage is the heritage of tangible and intangible heritage assets of a group or society that is inherited from past generations. Not all heritages of past generations are "heritage"; rather, heritage is a product of selection by soci ...
, Nanoscience and Neuroscience. In 2017 the Italian MAECI (Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International cooperation) in collaboration with the
MIUR The Ministry of Education, University and Research (in it, Ministero dell'Istruzione, dell'Università e della Ricerca, italic=no or MIUR) is the ministry of the Italian government for the national education system, the Italian universities and ...
(Ministry of Education, University and Research) launched a call for joint research projects between Italy and Sweden as a part of the 2018-2020 science and technology cooperation agreement. Among the prioritized areas of research there was
Natural Hazard A natural hazard is a natural phenomenon that might have a negative effect on humans and other animals, or the environment. Natural hazard events can be classified into two broad categories: geophysical and biological. An example of the distinct ...
, Technology applied to Nanoscience, Neuroscience and Oncology, Clear Energy, Intelligent Factory and Cyber Security, as well as Technology and Research applied to Cultural Heritage.


Sport

The Italian and Swedish men's national soccer teams confronted each other on the pit for the Fifa World Cup qualifications on November 13, 2017. The final result was 0-0, with the elimination of the Italian team. It was the second time in history that Italians were not present in the competition.


Resident diplomatic missions

Italy has an embassy in
Stockholm Stockholm () is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, largest city of Sweden as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in Scandinavia. Approximately 980,000 people liv ...
. Sweden has an embassy in Rome. File:Stockholm - Italiens ambassad 20190815.jpg, Embassy of Italy in Stockholm File:Roma - Ambasciata di Svezia in Italia.jpg, Embassy of Sweden in Rome In addition to the Rome embassy, Sweden has 13 other representations in Italy. These include consulates in
Anacapri Anacapri () is a ''comune'' on the island of Capri, in the Metropolitan City of Naples, Italy. Anacapri is located higher on the island than Capri (about higher on average)http://www.capritourism.com/imgg/download/capri_map_en.pdf —the Anc ...
,
Bari Bari ( , ; nap, label= Barese, Bare ; lat, Barium) is the capital city of the Metropolitan City of Bari and of the Apulia region, on the Adriatic Sea, southern Italy. It is the second most important economic centre of mainland Southern Italy a ...
, Bologna,
Cagliari Cagliari (, also , , ; sc, Casteddu ; lat, Caralis) is an Italian municipality and the capital of the island of Sardinia, an autonomous region of Italy. Cagliari's Sardinian name ''Casteddu'' means ''castle''. It has about 155,000 inhabitant ...
, Castiglione della Pescaia, Florence, Genoa, Milan, Naples,
Palermo Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan ...
, Turin, Trieste and
Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400  ...
. Italy has 7 other representations in Sweden, These include consulates in Malmö, Umeå,
Sundsvall Sundsvall () is a city and the seat of Sundsvall Municipality in Västernorrland County, Sweden. It has a population of 58,807 as of 2020; more than 95,000 live in the municipal area. It is Sweden's 21st largest city by population. History Th ...
,
Gothenburg Gothenburg (; abbreviated Gbg; sv, Göteborg ) is the second-largest city in Sweden, fifth-largest in the Nordic countries, and capital of the Västra Götaland County. It is situated by the Kattegat, on the west coast of Sweden, and has ...
and vice consulates in
Luleå Luleå ( , , locally ; smj, Luleju; fi, Luulaja) is a city on the coast of northern Sweden, and the capital of Norrbotten County, the northernmost county in Sweden. Luleå has 48,728 inhabitants in its urban core (2018) and is the seat of Lu ...
,
Karlstad Karlstad (, ) is the 20th-largest city in Sweden, the seat of Karlstad Municipality, the capital of Värmland County, and the largest city in the province Värmland in Sweden. The city proper had 65,856 inhabitants in 2020 with 95,167 inhabitants ...
, Visby.


See also

* Foreign relations of Italy * Foreign relations of Sweden *
Swedish Italians Swedish Italians ( sv, Svenskitalienare) are Swedish citizens or residents of Italian ethnic, cultural and linguistic heritage or identity. There are approximately 8,126 people born in Italy living in Sweden today, as well as 10,961 people born i ...
* Swedes in Italy


References


External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Italy-Sweden relations
Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
Bilateral relations of Sweden