Ethix welcomes the renewed debate in Sweden on responsible investment and controversial weapons. This follows an article this morning in Dagens Industri, Sweden's leading business newspaper. A news story was also aired on TV4.

The issue of weapons production is controversial, particularly when it comes to certain categories such as cluster munitions, anti-personnel mines and nuclear weapons. (See also Ethix Press: SRI and Corporate Involvement in Nuclear Weapons).

"Investors are concerned about these issues. The difficulty is in identifying which companies are involved in production of these weapons. Investors are often also looking for an international framework to guide them in investment decisions. The Ottawa Treaty provides this framework for anti-personnel mines, however no international convention prohibiting cluster weapons or nuclear arms currently exists" said Ulrika Hasselgren, Vice-President at Ethix.

Ethix has been assisting Belgian investors to comply with national legal requirements prohibiting investment in companies involved in anti-personnel mines. As of early 2007 Belgian law also prohibits investment in companies involved in cluster munitions. While Swedish law does not explicitly prohibit investment in companies that produce certain weapon categories, a number of Swedish investors have implemented a policy on cluster weapons and nuclear arms. Several other investors within the Nordic region have also initiated a discussion on this subject.

Update: A follow-up article was published Thursday morning. Senior Ethix Analyst Reinhilde Weidacher was interviewed, saying: "Belgium was the first country in the world to forbid investment in anti-personnel mines and cluster weapons. We would like to see Swedish actors become more active in these developments".

For more information on Ethix, contact Ulrika Hasselgren on +46 8 407 00 11. For more information on controversial weapons, contact Reinhilde Weidacher on +46 8 407 00 15.