A Swedish court sentenced the Danish-Swedish 42-year-old Rasmus Paludan, founder and head of the Danish nationalist anti-immigration party Stram Kurs to four months in jail for two counts of “incitement against an ethnic group” after making hateful comments at political rallies two years ago
In 2022, Paludan made his offensive remarks directed at Muslims, Arabs and Africans during protests that he led in the southern city of Malmo in 2022, the court said. He also burned a copy of the Quran, Islam’s holy book, on at least one occasion. In response, a violent wave of riots swept the country.
What evidence do we have about his ties to the Kremlin?
After the demonstration held in January 2023, where he had burnt the Qur’an in Stockholm, Swedish media have reported that Paludan’s demonstration permit of 320 Swedish krona (£25, $31) was paid for by a former contributor to the Kremlin-backed channel RT, Chang Frick, who now does regular media spots for the far-right Sweden Democrats. Frick has confirmed he paid for the permit to hold the protest but denied he had asked anyone to burn the Muslim holy book.
What is the aim of anti-Islamic acts?
An investigation by a group of European publications established that Russia is trying to carry out various actions in European countries with the aim of complicating relations between Turkey and the EU, as well as weakening support for Ukraine. “Those who allow such blasphemy in front of our embassy can no longer expect our support for their Nato membership,” Turkey’s president, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, said in response to the book burning.
Another goal is destabilization of European countries and distraction of attention from war in Ukraine to their own inner problems. It is evident that such actions are favorable for Russia, which is supporting and using far-right political parties and individuals in Europe.
