Iran's Foreign Minister Javad Zarif visited Stockholm on August 20 and 21 together with a large delegation consisting of the minister's staff, security personnel and Iranian journalists. The visit was part of a round trip in the Nordic countries to meet prime ministers and foreign ministers and give speeches.

The Minister's delegation first visited Finland and then traveled on to Sweden and met, among others, Prime Minister Stefan Löfven (S) and then Foreign Minister Margot Wallström (S). The visit ended in Norway.

The delegation included twelve people from the Iranian media. One of them, journalist Amir Tohid Fazel, jumped off in the middle of the visit to Sweden and sought asylum from the police.

But since the delegation began its Nordic visit to Finland, the defunct journalist must seek asylum there, according to EU rules.

- We have just been informed that his asylum application has been transferred from Sweden to Finland, which has acknowledged to be the competent state to try his asylum application, as the first European country where Mr Fazel arrived, in line with the Dublin Treaty, states lawyer Maria Teresa Vanacore in Italy who took care of the case.

escape

It was on the morning of August 21, just before Foreign Minister Zarif gave a speech at the Stockholm International Peace Institute Sipri in Solna, as the Iranian journalist fled from the Iranian delegation.

"It was the only chance I had that day," he told SVT News a few days after the flight.

He has previously described that he ran away from his hotel and changed clothes so as not to be recognized. He then threw his SIM card, jumped into a taxi and asked to be taken to the police where he sought asylum.

According to reports to SVT, the police then informed him that he had to seek asylum in Finland as it was the first country he arrived in the EU.