The Swedish Connection

In 1942, the Swedish government is officially neutral, but capitulates to German demands and engages in press censorship to avoid angering Germany. Fishermen spot a Nazi ship in Swedish waters, sparking fears of invasion, but it is a false alarm. Diplomat Gösta Engzell is a mid-level bureaucrat, working in a basement and fielding large quantities of asylum requests from Jews. Engzell gets a new secretary, Rut Vogl, and expresses concern about the size of his departmental office and Swedish immigration refusing Jewish asylum cases; he is rebuffed by cabinet secretary Staffan Söderblom on both counts. Engzell hears from Westring at the Norwegian consulate that a Swedish Jew has been taken into custody in Oslo, but Engzell tells the consulate not to provide the requested note verbale.