Reinfeldt and Olofsson back Green party talks
The Moderates and Centre party have backed Alliance coalition partner the Liberal party in calls to work with the Green party instead of the Sweden Democrats if the far-right party held the balance of power in parliament after the 2010 general election.
"We are not going to render ourselves dependent on the Sweden Democrats, it is a party which has strongly brutalized its 'us against them' thinking," Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt said.
"It would be impossible to work with such a party," the Moderate party leader declared, echoing Liberal party leader Jan Björklund's statement on Friday.
Centre party leader Maud Olofsson also followed the Liberal party line in ruling out a cooperation with the Sweden Democrats, arguing that the most natural step would be to sound out the Green party over a cooperation.
"We will not make ourselves dependent on xenophobic forces. We have been very clear on that even if certain parties in the opposition and within the media have not grasped that," Olofsson said.
Green party spokesperson, Maria Wetterstrand, raised the prospect this week of cooperating with the centre-right Alliance parties in the case that the far-right Sweden Democrats managed to gather the four percent support required to claim parliamentary seats.
"If we are bigger than the others, then it would be logical for the Centre party and Liberal party to open up for discussions with us," she told the Aftonbladet newspaper.
Jan Björklund on Friday explained the choice of the Green party as a prospective government partner as being due to the fact that it "is not a socialist party."
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"We are not going to render ourselves dependent on the Sweden Democrats, it is a party which has strongly brutalized its 'us against them' thinking," Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt said.
"It would be impossible to work with such a party," the Moderate party leader declared, echoing Liberal party leader Jan Björklund's statement on Friday.
Centre party leader Maud Olofsson also followed the Liberal party line in ruling out a cooperation with the Sweden Democrats, arguing that the most natural step would be to sound out the Green party over a cooperation.
"We will not make ourselves dependent on xenophobic forces. We have been very clear on that even if certain parties in the opposition and within the media have not grasped that," Olofsson said.
Green party spokesperson, Maria Wetterstrand, raised the prospect this week of cooperating with the centre-right Alliance parties in the case that the far-right Sweden Democrats managed to gather the four percent support required to claim parliamentary seats.
"If we are bigger than the others, then it would be logical for the Centre party and Liberal party to open up for discussions with us," she told the Aftonbladet newspaper.
Jan Björklund on Friday explained the choice of the Green party as a prospective government partner as being due to the fact that it "is not a socialist party."
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