The EU treaties guarantee the full legal protection of the rights of all minorities, including the LGBTQ community, but EU legislation does not require member states or candidate countries to adopt the exact same concept of [LGBTQ] marriage in their legislation – stated Jessica Rosencrantz, Sweden’s Minister for EU Affairs, in a written response to “Interpressnews,” addressing the agency’s question about what Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson meant when he said that, within the framework of European integration, Ukraine must regulate same-sex partnerships and ensure the full legal protection of the LGBTQ community, and whether the EU requires candidate countries to legalize LGBTQ marriage.

According to Jessica Rosencrantz, Sweden has extensive experience in supporting the rights of minorities, including the LGBTQ community, which is one of the core values of the European Union.

“The Swedish minister for EU affairs Jessica Rosencrantz wishes to issue the following statement: “Sweden has a long track-record of supporting and advancing the rights of the LGBTI communities and will continue, proudly, to do so. The EU treaties guarantee full legal protection of the rights of all minorities, including the LGBTI community. All EU citizens share the same indisputable right to live free from discrimination, hate or threats of violence. This is a core value of our Union and a non-negotiable condition for any candidate country. However, EU law does not require its Member States or candidate countries to adopt in their respective legislation the exact same notion of marriage,” the Swedish minister told “InterpressNews.”

For reference, last week, Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson published the following post on social media:

“Today in Sagerska, I welcomed Ukrainian LGBTQI veterans. As they risk their lives on the front lines and participate in resistance in other ways, they contribute to Ukraine’s defense. However, they are also a living expression of the liberal values for which Ukraine is fighting.

Today, same-sex couples in Ukraine cannot marry or enter into registered partnerships. The full legal protection of the rights of all minorities, including the LGBTQI community, is an important part of Ukraine’s alignment with the EU for us, and we support it. As a strong supporter of Ukraine, Sweden will closely monitor the implementation of all this,” he wrote.