Sweden announced the start of the gradual cancellation of its development aid to the State of Iraq, noting that the latter has sufficient resources to care for its population. The Swedish government said in a statement that it had instructed relief agencies such as the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (SIDA) and the Folk Bernadotte Academy to begin phasing out their operations by June 30, 2025. The statement added, "Conditions have changed and Iraq is now a middle-income country with sufficient resources to care for its population." The Swedish government explained that the decision represents "an opportunity to expand relations with Iraq through cooperation in areas such as trade, environment and immigration." According to reports, over the past 10 years, Swedish development aid provided to Iraq amounted to about 3 billion kroner. Source: National Iraqi News Agency