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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 04 STOCKHOLM 000569 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: ENRG EUN ECON EIND KGHG SENV SW
SUBJECT:  SWEDISH DEPUTY PM URGES SENIOR USG VISITS TO SWEDEN DURING 
EU PRESIDENCY; WANTS TO LAUNCH U.S.-EU ALERNATIVE ENERGY PARTNERSHIP 
AT U.S.-EU SUMMIT 
 
This is an Action request. Please see para 2. 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Summary:  On September 2, Deputy Prime Minister Olofsson 
pressed for the strong U.S.-Sweden cooperation in alternative 
technology to show results.  She urged a ministerial-level U.S. 
official come to the October 14-16 Informal meeting of EU 
Competitiveness Ministers to present U.S. efforts to transform the 
United States into an eco-efficient economy -- or another event 
during the Presidency.  Olofsson's State Secretary Altera explained 
that Sweden wants to expand the U.S.-EU alternative energy 
partnership to the EU level, and needs to work intensely to launch 
this effort at the US-EU summit planned for early November.  The 
meeting ended with a conversation of the challenge of convincing 
young people not to share files illegally via the internet.  End 
Summary. 
 
¶2.  (U) ACTION REQUEST:   The USG is currently batting 0 for 8 in 
responding to Swedish invitations for minister-level attendance at 
EU meetings.  Post requests Washington's help in securing a senior 
USG official visit to a suitable Presidency event in Sweden during 
this fall.  End Action request 
 
------  - 
Plea for Senior U.S. Official to Attend EU Informal Ministerial on 
Competitiveness 
------- 
 
¶3.  (SBU) On September 1, the Ambassador paid a courtesy call on 
Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Enterprise and Energy Maud 
Olofsson, the Swedish official at the forefront of the robust 
U.S.-Swedish cooperation in alternative technology through the "One 
Big Thing" alternative energy partnership, and related programs. 
Olofsson explained the main theme of Sweden's EU Presidency, 
transformation to an eco-efficient economy, i.e. achieving economic 
growth while reducing green house gas emissions.  (Comment:  Sweden 
is a proven leader in this area having grown its economy 46 percent 
between 1992 and 2008, while reducing its green house gas emissions 
by 9 percent.) 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Sweden has held a series of EU-related meetings and 
Informal Ministerials to promote eco-efficiency, including a July 
2009 meeting of Ministers for Energy and Environment.  The Swedish 
government has invited White House, cabinet-level and sub-cabinet 
level U.S. officials to these events to present U.S. efforts to the 
informal gatherings of European Ministers, but so far none have been 
able to come. (Comment: It is unprecedented for an EU Presidency 
host to invite USG officials of any level to their informal 
ministerial meetings.  During the Swedish Presidency, there have 
been a flood of such invitations.  This may have to do with Foreign 
Minister Carl Bildt's personal predilection, now shared by his 
fellow Ministers, to shake things up and to do things differently. 
While USG officials may have been surprised by such invitations, we 
should seriously consider taking advantage of the unprecedented 
opportunity the Swedes have given us.  End Comment) 
 
¶5.  (SBU) Olofsson said it is time to see results from strong 
U.S.-Swedish cooperation in clean technology in line with efforts 
toward a climate change agreement in Copenhagen and the new U.S. 
Administration's investment in new alternative energy technology. 
 
¶6.  (SBU) Olofsson noted that Sweden would have liked a senior U.S. 
official to attend some of the meetings at the July 2009 EU Informal 
Ministerial in Are of Energy and Environment Ministers in order to 
be part of the dialog on eco-efficiency and tell the EU Ministers 
what is happening in the United States. 
 
¶7.  (U) Olofsson said her priority is to have a Ministerial-level 
U.S. official attend the Informal Meeting of EU Competiveness 
Ministers in Umea, Sweden on October 14-16.  She stressed the 
importance of showing European Ministers that developing a green 
economy is a U.S. priority. 
 
¶8.  (U) Note on Invitations Extended to USG officials: 
 
The Embassy is aware of the following USG officials being invited by 
the Swedish EU Presidency to present to EU Informal Ministerial 
meetings in Sweden: 
 
Secretary of Energy Chu 
Deputy Secretary of Energy Poneman 
Assistant to the President for Energy and Climate Change Browner 
Secretary of Labor Solis 
Secretary of Health Sebelius 
Secretary of Homeland Security Napolitano 
Secretary Clinton 
Deputy Secretary Lew 
Special Envoy Stern 
 
STOCKHOLM 00000569  002 OF 004 
 
 
 
Of those, the invitations Secretary Clinton, Deputy Secretary Lew 
and Special Envoy Stern to attend EU Development Days October 22-24 
are still pending.  The other invitations were declined. 
 
In addition, Sweden has invited Assistant Secretary-level and other 
U.S. officials. 
 
Assistant Secretary of Energy Zoi invited to the EU Strategic Energy 
Plan conference October 20-21, invitation still pending. 
 
Assistant Secretary of State for Africa Carson represented the USG 
at the U.S.-EU Troika Meeting on Africa July 14 
 
Assistant Secretary for European and Eurasian Affairs Phil Gordon 
represented the U.S. at the U.S.-EU Political Director Troika on 
July 3. 
 
Department of Homeland Security Deputy Secretary Lute visited Sweden 
at the U.S. initiative for bilateral discussions, which was much 
appreciated by the GOS. 
 
Other U.S. officials who have visited recently at the U.S. 
initiative for bilateral consultations with Sweden related to the 
Swedish EU Presidency include: 
 
Special Envoy for Eurasian Energy Morningstar 
Special Advisor for the Great Lakes Region of Africa Wolpe 
Treasury Assistant Secretary Cohen 
 
End Note 
 
----- 
Need to See Results From U.S. Interest in Green Technology 
----- 
 
¶9.  (U) Olofsson said she discussed eco-efficiency with U.S. Energy 
Secretary Chu.  She noted that there was a lot of "low hanging 
fruit" where the U.S. and Sweden could get results, such as 
cooperation in building technologies and transport systems.  She 
said the challenge was to find proactive cooperation between U.S. 
and Swedish businesses on concrete projects in the U.S. and Europe. 
She said possible areas for business collaboration included building 
sustainable cities, and rebuilding in older communities, such as the 
sustainable development project in Stockholm's formerly run-down 
Hammarby district.  Olofsson invited U.S. officials to call her to 
propose projects. 
 
¶10.  (U) Olofsson suggested that Sweden could perhaps arrange an 
eco-efficient activity in the years ahead to promote business and 
innovation. Altera noted that the way to do this was to ask for 
practical advice from businessmen on productive areas.  The U.S. 
side noted that U.S. firms are in the forefront of many of these 
areas, such as energy efficiency and improved housing construction. 
 
------- 
Taking the U.S.-Sweden Alternative Energy Partnership to the EU 
Level 
------- 
 
¶11.  (U) Olofsson noted that U.S.-Sweden cooperation included 
extending the U.S.-Sweden Alternative Energy Partnership to the EU 
level.  Her State Secretary Ola Altera explained how said Sweden was 
ready to launch the Next Big Thing (NBT), the U.S.-EU Alternative 
Energy Partnership, and wanted to launch it at the U.S.-EU Summit 
planned for early November. 
 
¶12.  (U) Altera said he had consulted his State Secretary 
colleagues, Gustav Lind in the PM's office and MFA's Frank Belfrage, 
and everyone agreed that Sweden should be talking to the European 
Commission about NBT. 
 
¶13.  (SBU) Altera said the Swedish EU Presidency is positive to both 
U.S. energy initiatives, NBT and the U.S.-EU Energy Council, and to 
the broad approach behind both efforts.  He said Sweden's priority 
is NBT, technology, research, entrepreneurship of alternative 
technology, and being results-oriented.  He said Sweden does not 
want to see these efforts bogged down by geo-political discussions 
of the security side of the energy issue.  Therefore, he said, if 
NBT can be part of the U.S.-Energy Council that would be good, but 
we should drop that link if it would bog down work on NBT. 
 
¶14.  (SBU)  Altera also noted the value of the Transatlantic 
Economic Council (TEC), but said Sweden wants to avoid the risk of 
bogging down NBT if it is "run through people in Brussels." 
 
¶15.  (SBU)  Altera said we need to work intensely to get NBT as a 
 
STOCKHOLM 00000569  003 OF 004 
 
 
result of the U.S.-EU Summit.  He said it would be important for the 
NBT, U.S.-EU Energy Council or "whatever we call it" to meet before 
Christmas 2009 in order to set the course, and get the effort 
started. 
 
¶16.  (U) Altera said his Ministry was taking a pragmatic approach to 
launching the NBT, listening to various views.  When the U.S. side 
suggested that NBT needed to be distilled down so it could be 
absorbed into the systems of other countries, Altera referred to 
practical meetings on the U.S.-Sweden Alternative Energy Partnership 
held between U.S. and Swedish business that helped shape the 
successful bilateral U.S.-Sweden alternative energy partnership. 
Olofsson said Sweden could arrange meetings to connect companies as 
part of the US-EU alternative energy partnership, and even 
co-finance projects if that is needed.  Referring to her 
government's report on eco-efficient economies (which is at the link 
www.se2009.eu/polopoly_fs/1.6629 
!menu/standard/file/A%20European% 
20Eco%20Efficient%20Economy.pdf), 
Olofsson said we should pick out areas in the forefront of this 
effort for such cooperation. 
 
¶17.  (U) Finally, Altera noted that NBT does not replace the strong 
U.S.-Sweden bilateral cooperation on alternative energy. 
 
¶18.  (SBU) Comment:  Following the meeting, the Embassy got 
additional details about Swedish plans for launching the NBT from 
Maria Brogren at the Energy Division of the Ministry.  She noted 
that the European Council had ordered the Commission to give its 
opinion on the U.S.-proposed U.S.-EU Energy Council.  She repeated 
that her government's first priority and preference would be to 
launch NBT at the U.S.-EU Summit with participation by Secretary 
Chu, Secretary Clinton, Minister Olofsson and Foreign Minister 
Bildt.  She said Sweden would like to see that foursome present for 
the first meeting of the Energy Council.  But, she said, if 
geopolitics bogs down the Energy Council, Sweden would want to move 
on the technology sub group effort of the Energy Council by 
launching the Next Big Thing and later folding it into the 
technology working group of the Energy Council.  End Comment. 
 
------- 
Bridging the Gap on Illegal File Sharing 
------ 
 
¶19.  (SBU) The Ambassador concluded the meeting by raising 
intellectual property rights, since Olofsson's party (the Center 
Party) is the one member of the ruling coalition least supportive of 
U.S. efforts to improve Sweden's efforts against illegal file 
sharing.  Olofsson said there are discussions within the government 
about putting more legislation in place against file sharing.  While 
legislation is needed, and Sweden follows European level 
legislation, she argued that a solution should not only be left to 
politicians via legislation.  The problem was a market failure, the 
lack of a product that people could easily access at a reasonable 
price. Many young people, she said, think that all file sharing is 
free.  It is hard to change their perception of the rules.  Olofsson 
said she wanted artists and creative people to be paid for their 
ideas, but we need to create a market solution that is easy for 
people to follow. 
 
¶20.  (SBU) The U.S. side countered that as knowledge-based 
economies, both the U.S. and Sweden have a lot to loose from illegal 
file sharing.  We need to make this public debate about the artists 
being stolen from. 
 
¶21.  (SBU) Olofsson noted that Nokia and Ericsson have introduced 
new services to share products while paying the artists, which is 
good.  We need to find a way to pay artists property, not just to 
pass legislation, she repeated. 
 
¶22.  (SBU) Olofsson said we need to understand how young people see 
the problem.  We should talk about what is happening now, not just 
pass legislation, she stressed.  She pointed to the success of 
Sweden's Pirate Party in the European Parliamentary elections as an 
example of that young people "do not trust us."  She said the Pirate 
Party attracted voters from both the right and the left, and the 
Pirate Party MEP now has two advisors, one with a background in the 
Left Party, and one from a neo-liberal party. 
 
------ 
Final Comment 
----- 
 
¶23.  (SBU) The request for help in securing a senior USG official 
visit to Sweden during the remaining months of the Presidency was a 
direct plea for help.  Olofsson said that she is hopeful that the 
USG will be able to demonstrate the importance it attaches to the 
 
STOCKHOLM 00000569  004 OF 004 
 
 
bilateral links in the Alternative energy area by actually sending a 
senior official to a meeting where the Swedes host its European 
partners.  End comment. 
 
BARZUN