Stockholm - A majority of Swedes favour the Swedish state's temporary takeover of Volvo Cars if its US owner Ford cannot secure Volvo's future, according to a survey published Saturday.

The survey, commissioned by the Swedish Association of Graduate Engineers, said 60 per cent of Swedes believed there was a big or quite big risk that Volvo Cars would disappear from Sweden in a few years.

A majority, 64 per cent, favoured the state's stepping in and offer the cash-strapped company a loan if necessary, while 68 per cent favoured temporary state ownership.

Stockholm  - Irish Prime Minister Brian Cowen met Friday with his Swedish counterpart Fredrik Reinfeldt in Stockholm, and briefed him about the Irish government's views on how to go ahead with the European Union reform treaty.

Cowen told Swedish radio news that Ireland hoped a EU summit in December could "outline the elements of a solution."

Voters in Ireland earlier this year rejected the Lisbon Treaty, which aimed to streamline decision-making in the 27-nation bloc. It cannot enter into force until all member states have ratified it.

Sweden, which last week ratified the treaty, is set to assume the six-month rotating EU presidency in July.

Uppsala, Sweden  - A manifesto calling for more cuts in greenhouse gas emissions was signed Friday in Uppsala cathedral by some 30 religious leaders and policy-makers invited by Swedish Archbishop Anders Wejryd.

Prior to the signing, the leaders held a roundtable discussion and noted that most religions have a "local presence" that helps them relate to "the fragile situation" of people impacted by flooding or other effects of climate change, Wejryd said.

Religions could also stand "shoulder to shoulder" and "defend the rights of both humans and creation," he said.

Stockholm  - Sweden has tipped into recession, Statistics Sweden said Friday.

Stockholm - Sweden is prepared to deploy a plane to evacuate European Union nationals injured in terrorist attacks in the Indian financial centre of Mumbai if necessary, the cabinet said Thursday.

Stockholm - Freedom of speech is under threat worldwide Italian author Roberto Saviano and British author Salman Rushdie said late Tuesday at a lecture organized by the Swedish Academy.

Journalists and writers in countries ranging from China to Mexico to Zimbabwe are under threat, they said, reminding the audience of the murder of investigative journalist Anna Politkovskaya in Russia.

Saviano and Rushdie were invited to Stockholm by the Swedish Academy that selects the Nobel literature prize winner. Both also shared their own experiences of living under death threats.