Swedish Mekong chief faces growing conflicts over dams

Nordic combat units will be pulled out of Afghanistan over the next two years and annual military costs will be slashed by hundreds of millions of dollars. Sweden, Denmark and Finland have pledged sharp increases in bilateral aid to Afghanistan, while Norway, the largest Nordic Afghan donor, will keep its aid at the current level. Nordic aid to Afghanistan amounts to USD 350 million.

Amid calls for use of the aid weapon as a means of presssuring Ethiopia to release two jailed Swedish journalists, donors are expressing cautious concern. Deputy chief of Human Rights Watch Jan Egeland chides donors for going to bed with the authoritarian regime in Addis.

From January Denmark assumes the Presidency of the European Union. Key aid policies are up for discussion, and Development Minister Christian Friis Bach aims to leave clear Danish fingerprints.

A Development Today survey showed a dramatic drop in the number of Nordics in UN top jobs. Officials now say that at lower levels, there are also fewer Swedish and Norwegian nationals working in the UN system.