George H.W. Bush: “Sweden February 20, 1992 Mr. Prime Minister, I am delighted to have welcomed you on your first official visit to…”

“Sweden February 20, 1992 Mr. Prime Minister, I am delighted to have welcomed you on your first official visit to Washington and to have shared very profitable, congenial talks. Prime Minister Bildt comes here at a time when Europe is being transformed and when Sweden itself is beginning a new chapter in its history. As the Prime Minister remarked on his election night last September, the winds of political change blowing through Europe have finally reached Sweden. Well, he understands well his nation's past. Just more than 100 years ago, his great-great-grandfather was Prime Minister. But even more, Prime Minister Bildt represents a rising generation of leadership for a people seeking a new role in Europe and a new birth of freedom and initiative in Swedish domestic policy. We welcome Sweden's desire to play a more active part in the emerging global community. The Prime Minister is committed to democracy, to free markets. And I know that as active partners in the common endeavor to create a free, open, and prosperous world, the United States and Sweden will make a real difference. Sweden and the U.S. share a deep and unswerving commitment to peace, and Sweden is a vital partner in our global nonproliferation efforts. A model peacekeeper, Sweden has shown its commitment to this function of collective security many times, with distinction, in the United Nations system.…”