[Sweden]: Message to Australia

[Connor]

Kingdom of Sweden Holmgren Administration

April 2008​

Dear Ambassador Howard Brown,

I write to you following an internal review of compliance with our publicised reasonable limitations and restrictions, defined by domestic law, in relation to diplomatic missions within the realm.

Since January 2002 the Kingdom of Sweden has been one of few nations worldwide to comply with Article 7 of the Vienna Convention, as amended by the Global Assembly, in publicising the limitations of staff within said missions. This is the responsibility of the Department of Foreign Affairs, Office of Global Coordination. As it stands, these limitations and restrictions have remained unchanged since January 2002 and our records show no request or notice by the Commonwealth of Australia to deviate from what is currently listed. It is the responsibility of the sending state to ensure compliance with domestic law and should regularly be checking for alterations made by the Department of Foreign Affairs - however, again, I should stress that there has been no change since January 2002 and where possible my office would make contact for any significant changes.

Our review has included that of the Australia Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Bilateral Relations Group, Europe Division publicly available information. Within this information a number of staff are documented. Whilst it is clear that numerous members of staff are categorised as 'Diplomatic, Consular and Mission Staff', it is not clear for our office to determine whether our domestic limitations and restrictions are being complied with.

Can I please request that you urgently inform us of your staffing numbers in the definitions described within Article 1 of the Vienna Convention?

Regards,
Malin Bergström
Assistant Secretary of Foreign Affairs for Oceanian Affairs
Department of Foreign Affairs

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All information is encrypted and subject to the Swedish Document Classification and Security Act 1995​

Owen

 

[Owen]

​

SECRETARY OF THE DEPARTMENT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE​

SECURITY CLASSIFICATION: SECRET ​

2 May 2008

Dear Assistant Secretary Bergstrom, I have been made aware of a letter you have sent to our Ambassador to Sweden. As the highest-level public servant within the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, it is my responsibility to assure adequate staffing levels across diplomatic missions operated by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. I have reviewed the numbers of staffing and currently we have 100 diplomatic, consular and mission staff at both the Australian Embassy in Stockholm and the Australian Consulate-General in Pretoria, with 10 security staff in Stockholm and 20 security staff in Pretoria. From what I understand, we are entitled to up to 112 staff in total of varying employment. The broad-based category of "diplomatic, consular and mission staff" does include diplomatic personnel as well as administrative and technical staff and those who provide consular assistance, which we believe would fall under the second category. It excludes property management related staff (cleaners, etc). Currently in Stockholm we only have 5 staff who hold diplomatic passports and therefore would be what we consider "diplomats": Ambassador Deputy Head of Mission First Secretary Defence Attache for Northern Europe Assistant Defence Attache for Northern Europe What I'm unsure about is if this includes all staffing within the territory of Sweden or just per mission. Currently we operate the Consulate-General in Pretoria with the same level of staffing, in fact with slightly more security due to the precarious security nature in South Africa. We think it is reasonable to operate a large Consulate-General given the large population of South Africa and the nature of it being a diplomatic hub for Southern Africa, as well as it being a successor to a former Embassy. This is also the same reasoning as to why we maintain a high staffing level in Sweden, as it maintains Australia's diplomatic presence throughout Northern Europe and is currently accredited to Norway, Finland, Latvia and Estonia. If you do wish to see staffing levels changed at either the Embassy or Consulate-General, please let me know and we will review them. Yours sincerely, Michael L'Estrange.

Parliament House, CANBERRA, ACT 2600 Telephone: (02) 6277 7700​

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Connor

 

[Connor]

Kingdom of Sweden Holmgren Administration

April 2008​

Dear Secretary Michael L'Estrange,

First and foremost allow me to express my gratitude for your prompt response to my correspondence.

The Kingdom of Sweden operate strict protocols in accordance with Article 7 of the Vienna Convention. At present we allow one singular head of the mission, eleven members of diplomatic staff, one hundred administrative and technical staff and twenty-five members of the security staff. Members of the service staff and private servants require bespoke service agreements in order to be facilitated. From what you explain, I would make the assumption that your five staff in possession of diplomatic passports are within the recognised 'head of the mission' and 'diplomatic staff categories', the remainder of the team being members of the administrative and technical staff - that, in my eyes, means you are well within, and even below, the limitations and restrictions in domestic law.

We are committed to encouraging a closer relationship with the Commonwealth of Australia.

I understand that the situation in South Africa, together with outcome of the Resolution on Antarctica has long been a point of contention between our nations. Our government has demonstrated sustained and verifiable investment in both regions, consisting of billions of dollars. We have not merely asserted dominance over these regions, we have committed to long-term infrastructure development and regional growth. On that basis, we believe firmly that Australia can regard our engagement as credible, responsible and worthy of your trust.

I look forward to a prosperous and cooperative relationship between our nations in the future.

Regards,
Malin Bergström
Assistant Secretary of Foreign Affairs for Oceanian Affairs
Department of Foreign Affairs

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CONFIDENTIAL
Crown Copyright © Kingdom of Sweden
All information is encrypted and subject to the Swedish Document Classification and Security Act 1995​

Owen