Sweden will allocate 20 million Swedish kronor (approximately $2 million) to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty in 2025.
This is stated on the countryʼs government website.
Sweden has been among the top three donors to free media in the world for several years. The decision to fund Radio Free Europe was described as "part of our continued work to support journalists and independent media".
All this so that journalists can continue to work where freedom of speech is restricted. After the US stopped funding, many people risk losing access to independent information, Sweden believes.
“Free and independent media are the foundation of our democracies. They are the best vaccine against propaganda and disinformation. Press freedom is currently under threat in several places. In principle, all Russian independent media outlets have been banned, blocked, or designated as undesirable organizations, and the United States has decided to end support for free media in Europe,” the government emphasizes.
Sweden believes that assisting independent media in dangerous or unstable environments is an important step in supporting democracy in the long term.
- On March 14, Trump signed an executive order that cuts the work of seven government agencies, including USAGM, the agency responsible for foreign affairs. It oversees media outlets such as Voice of America and Radio Liberty, among others.
- After that, the US stopped paying the grant that funded these media outlets — the broadcasters sued. A US court ordered the restoration of this funding for Radio Liberty and Voice of America. Later, a federal appeals court blocked this decision for Voice of America.
- Earlier, American billionaire and head of the new US Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) Elon Musk called for the closure of Radio Liberty and Voice of America. At the time, he said that no one listens to Radio Liberty and Voice of America, and called these media outlets “crazy left-wing radicals who talk to themselves, burning through a billion dollars of US taxpayer money every year”. The US government has historically portrayed Voice of America as a counterweight to foreign propaganda and a model of free, honest, truthful news coverage.
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