Olof Palme, Sweden, and the Vietnam War

In 1972, Swedish Prime Minister Olof Palme’s fierce condemnation of the Christmas Bombings of the North Vietnamese cities of Hanoi and Haiphong led to a breakdown in diplomatic relations at the highest level between Sweden and the United States. The author argues that Sweden’s official position of neutrality allowed its Prime Minister greater independence of action on the international stage. Palme opposed the American military intervention in Southeast Asia for its violation of Vietnamese self-