On the other side of the Cold War, he also provoked the United States, which broke off diplomatic ties with Sweden twice due to Palme’s actions. The first time was after he marched in a torchlight procession side by side with North Vietnam’s ambassador to Moscow in February 1968. The second time was after he criticized the bombing of Hanoi just before Christmas 1972, comparing the United States’ actions to the worst massacres of the twentieth century.
