link to 5 Great Places To Stay in Iceland. (Also see Are Norwegians and Swedes the Same People?). With the formation of the Kalmar Union in 1397, these three Scandinavian nations, along with their respective territories, were ruled by a common monarch, Queen Margrethe I of Denmark. Norway saw a 40% increase over the five-year-period of young people seeking help for mental health difficulties. Sweden has a population of 10 million people, nearly nine out of 10 of whom live in urban areas. Don't worry man, nobody hates Sweden, it's just sibling rivalry. Also Do Swedes Actually Like Surstromming? , This blog uses affiliate links and cookies, Growing Your Travel Blog Through Branding . The reasons behind Turkey's opposition to Sweden and Finland joining NATO are complicated, emotional and steeped in decades ofoftenviolent history. I pointed out that Sweden was one of the most bloodthirsty nations on earth for much of the last millennium. Finland's is a reactive, listening culture, burdened by taboos too many to mention (civil war, second world war and cold war-related, mostly). As Norwegian anthropologist Thomas Hylland Eriksen put it to me when I visited his office in Oslo University: "We've always been used to thinking of ourselves as part of the solution, and with the oil we suddenly became part of the problem. More . By and large the report challenges our typical conception of the happiness trajectory of life - especially that we are all at our happiest while young. Please see the About page for details. While most of the Kurds living in Sweden which local groups say number as many as 100,000 have no affiliation with the PKK, the Swedish government has supported members of other Kurdish organizations, particularly the political wing of the PKK's Syrian branch, called the PYD. RUSSIA. The NATO average was estimated at 1.6% last year. The reasons why are complicated, emotional and steeped in decades ofoftenviolent history. Western governments hailed the Kurdish fighters as allies, and several EU countries put various embargoes on Turkey due to their targeting of Kurdish militias in Syria, highlighting the intractable differences between how each side perceived the fighters. Enough with foraging for dinner. The study, prepared by the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network, examines six factors that relate to a heightened state of contentment: Based on these life-affirming results, it is safe to presume that Danish and Swedish forebearers would look upon their progeny with great pride and perhaps even vindication. Russia has threatened its close Arctic neighbours Sweden and Finland with 'military consequences' if they join NATO. For example when the US came and made that whole ASAP Rocky bullshit, the Danish media was all over the place, defending Sweden and condemning America. There remains a disturbing Islamophobic sub-subculture in Norway. According to metrics that measure a populations collective sense of happiness, they have also developed into thriving countries. By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. Spread out between Turkey, Syria, Iraq and Iran, the Kurds have been heavily persecuted, marginalized and even been victims of genocide in the counties where they live see Saddam Hussein's chemical gas attacks that killed nearly 200,000 Kurds in Iraq in the late 1980s. Crucially, they all perform well in terms of government openness and effectiveness. As it turns out, this one comprises both truth and fiction. It's all over a tiny group of islands, believe it or not. They also found that people were more than three times more likely to report a low score if they were unemployed, especially men, who were also more likely to report mental health problems when unemployed. It was part of Sweden for 600 years, and the cultures are similar, a minority of Finns speak Swedish, surely they are Swedish? In fact, Erdogan has already blocked an early attempt by NATO to fast-track Finland and Sweden's applications, saying their membership would make the alliance "a place where representatives of terrorist organizations are concentrated.". Global Business and Financial News, Stock Quotes, and Market Data and Analysis. Norwegians love their country and many of its citizens believe it is better than other nations, though in a non-hateful way. Their collective wisdom is clear: Swedes do not dislike Norwegians, and Norwegians do not dislike Swedes. Sweden says the PKK and PYD are different but Turkey says they are one and the same. But this does not mean that they are all too chummy either. Sweden's foreign ministry declined to comment on Erdogan's accusations when contacted by CNBC. This gesture was repeated when members of the Sweden Democrats abstained in the European Parliament resolution condemning Hungary's controversial LGBTIQ law. Sweden's top diplomat Ann Linde has stressed that Stockholm considers the PKK a terrorist organization but there remained "misunderstandings" over using the term for other Kurdish groups, such as the YPG. References:[1] Source[2] Source[3] Source[4] Source[5] Source[6] Source[7] Source[8] Source[9] Source. Members of Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) continue operations against the PKK, listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU, and the Syrian Kurdish YPG militia, which Turkey regards as a terror group, within Turkey's Operation Peace Spring in Ras Al Ayn, Syria on October 17, 2019. In other places, no words are exchanged at all and its not intended, or perceived as, rude. It operates mostly in southeastern Turkey and parts of northern Iraq. It is time to redress the imbalance, shed a little light Beyond the Wall. Today, they are friendly rivals, especially when it comes to getting in the last word. Got plenty of them. Luckily, judging by a recent journey I took with my eldest son the length of the country by train, the place appears to be 99% trees. Well, they do have high levels of trust and social cohesion, and do very nicely from industrial pork products, but according to the OECD they also work fewer hours per year than most of the rest of the world. This follows some unfortunate incidents involving Finnish students the burning of Porvoo cathedral by an 18-year-old in 2006; the Jokela shootings (another disgruntled 18-year-old) in 2007, and the shooting of 10 more students by a peer in 2008 which led some to speculate whether Finnish schools were quite as wonderful as their reputation would have us believe. Apparently, crying at funerals is frowned upon and "remembered long afterwards". But joining NATO requires consensus approval from all existing members, and Turkey one of the group's most strategically important and militarily powerful members is not happy. "The next day, people laugh about it. The report notes that in Finland, which ranked as the happiest world country in 2018, suicide was responsible for a third of all deaths among the age bracket. The Nordic countries share a history that goes back hundreds of years. Kurdish fighters in Syria linked to the PKK played a major role in the fight against ISIS, receiving weapons support and funding from the U.S and Europe, including Sweden. If you can cope with this, and the cost, and the cold (both metaphorical and inter-personal), then by all means join me in my adopted hyggelige home. Swedish foreign minister: We won't be secure without NATO membership, Sweden and Finland want to join NATO. There is no true animosity between these two former enemies today, which is a testament to the high standard of civility cultivated throughout Scandinavia in the modern era. In Denmark, 18.3% of people aged 16 to 24 said they suffered from poor mental health - with the number rising to 23.8% for women in that age bracket. Norway lost a brief war with Sweden in 1814 and was forced to enter into a Union with Sweden. And due to 1&2 Sweden has had more interactions with its Nordic neighbours than the other Nordic countries. The land and nature. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg talks speaks during a joint press with Sweden and Finland's Foreign ministers after their meeting at the Nato headquarters in Brussels on January 24, 2022 . The current state of relations between Denmark and Sweden is at times nebulous, and at other times complex. It may be no surprise to hear that Northern Europe is top of the charts in SDGs with Finland, Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Austria as the top sustainable countries leading the way in creating a more sustainable world. But for as long as the internet has . Last Sunday night confirmed literally none of our guesses. Some Swedes are deeply offended at the joke; some laugh and agree. which ranked as the happiest world country in 2018, Prince Andrew offered Frogmore Cottage - reports, Ed Sheeran says wife developed tumour in pregnancy, Bieber cancels remaining Justice world tour dates, China and Belarus call for peace in Ukraine, Trump lashes out at Murdoch over vote fraud case, Man survives 31 days in jungle by eating worms, Eli Lilly caps monthly insulin costs in US at $35. A positive decision would then be presented to parliament for approval early next week. The Swedes are, he says, "highly adept at insulating themselves from each other". Researchers found mental health to be one of the most significant barriers to subjective well-being. Finnish Member of Parliament Paivi Rasanen and . I think a lot of the reason Sweden being targetted by its neighbours can be attributed to simple facts: Sweden being the immediate Nordic neighbour of Denmark/Norway/Finland, Sweden being the largest country in the Nordics. Their interconnected history binds them to one another in a way that no two other nations share. From the military perspective, the addition of Finlands and Swedens armed forces would represent a major boost to Natos assets in northern Europe, filling a hole in the alliances defences by doubling the length of its border with Russia and improving security and stability in the Baltic region. Competitive spirits are often the product of particular values that are held individually. The Swedish approach. They may have different policies on border control. I'm afraid I have to set you straight on Danish television too. According to a report in Politiken this month, the proportion of people below the poverty line has doubled over the last decade. The top eight adjectives they chose were: envious, stiff, industrious, nature loving, quiet, honest, dishonest, xenophobic. "The Sweet Danish Life: Copenhagen: Cool, Creative, Carefree," simpered National Geographic; Protesters clash with police at an asylum centre near Copenhagen in 2008. Seems like a legit reason. It's likely. Life here is pretty comfortable, more so for indigenous families than for immigrants or ambitious go-getters (Google "Jantelov" for more on this), but as with all the Nordic nations, it remains largely free of armed conflict, extreme poverty, natural disasters and Jeremy Kyle. Social media, in particular, has given endless opportunities for people to form like-minded communities and discuss important issues. We exists to inform people about the people, culture, and history of Northern Europe. Centuries ago, Danes and Swedes fought for regional supremacy. Sweden denies this, saying it supports other Kurds who are not in the PKK but the details are more complicated. Since 1984, between 30,000 and 40,000 people are estimated to have died in fighting between the PKK and Turkish government, according to Crisis Group. Rent is much more expensive in Norway than Sweden, up to 32% higher in fact. The end of the Kalmar Union also marked the beginning of a tumultuous period that saw Denmark and Sweden engage in numerous bloody conflicts with the aim of achieving supremacy over the strategically important Baltic Sea region. The PKK is classified as a terrorist organization by Turkey, as well as by the U.S., Canada, Australia and the European Union. The people of Iceland are fascinating. The idea is that because Sweden's horrific death rates followed its refusal to lock down its society as strictly as other countries, the latter must have been the cause of the former. Essentially, many Finns and Swedes increasingly feel that joining Nato will help keep them safe when they face a plainly belligerent and unpredictable Russian leader. The simple truth of the matter is that despite hundreds of years of vying for regional supremacy with great loss of life on both sides, modern Danes and Swedes do not hate each other. Some do; some dont. If, as a headline in this paper once claimed, it is "the most successful society the world has ever seen", why aren't more of you dreaming of "a little place" in Ume? 1. Sweden's Prime Minister, Ulf Kristersson, referencing the unrealistic demands that Turkey is making, said on January 9 that, "Turkey both confirms that we did what we said we would do, but they also say they want things we can't and don't want . They are already Nato partners, taking part in exercises and exchanging intelligence with the alliance. Btw, there was a similar thread in r/Nordiccountries recently: r/Nordiccountries/comments/jqwqxt/why_do_nordic_countries_citizens_seem_to_dislike/. At the same time, Foreign Minister Mevlt avuolu said both countries must provide. NATO expansion is something it has previously cited to justify invading Ukraine, also a NATO partner. Finland's leaders on Thursday officially expressed support for applying to NATO "without delay," while Sweden's ruling party is expected to follow suit on Sunday. Swedens opposition to Nato membership has been more ideological. I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Why Swedish workplaces aren't as equal as you think, Human error to blame for deadly train crash, says Greek PM, At the crash site of 'no hope' - BBC reporter in Greece. Swedish media have said a final government decision will be made on Monday, with a formal application for membership to be submitted shortly afterwards. Scandinavian jokes featuring "the Swede, the Dane and the Norwegian" are commonplace in schools. It's also a reflection of differing definitions over who and what constitutes intolerable Kurdish extremism," Ibish said. Both Norway and Sweden are "long" countries. "Turkey is not happy about the fact that they suddenly become good guys just because they came in handy against ISIS.". Swedens ruling Social Democrats have been split on the issue and are holding an internal consultation, with a decision also due on Sunday. (The other day, I turned up at my local A&E to be told that I had to make an appointment, which I can't help feeling rather misunderstands the nature of the service.)