Former Swedish prime minister Carl Bildt has advised Donald Trump to "stop digging" after the President defended his comments over the country's immigration system.

Mr Trump baffled Swedish leaders by falsely suggesting there was an immigration-related security incident in the country on Friday, before later stating his comments were based on a TV report he saw on Fox News.

The President went on to claim: "The FAKE NEWS media is trying to say that large scale immigration in Sweden is working out just beautifully. NOT!"

In response, former Swedish prime minister Carl Bildt has offered Mr Trump "a piece of friendly advice" and told him: "When you are in a hole, stop digging".

So what did happen in Sweden on Friday?

Earlier, Mr Bildt tweeted: "Last year there were (approximately) 50% more murders only in Orlando/Orange (County) in Florida, where Trump spoke the other day, than in all of Sweden. Bad."


According to a White House spokesperson, Mr Trump's original claims were a reference to rising crime in the country and not to a specific incident.

However, official figures show that since 2005 crime has fallen in Sweden, which has taken in hundreds of thousands of immigrants from war-torn countries like Iraq and Syria.

Sweden's most recent attack linked to extremism happened in Stockholm in December 2010.

Image: Mr Bildt hit out at the President's claims of a security incident in Sweden

Sky News Correspondent Siobhan Robbins said Mr Trump's point about crime in Sweden "was fairly opaque".

She said: "While the setting for the statement may have resembled a campaign rally, Donald Trump is no longer just a candidate jostling for the top job, he's the most powerful leader in the world and inaccurate words count.

"Already, some of his supporters have gone online to accuse the media of 'covering up the #Swedenincident'.

"While many in Sweden have laughed off Trump's claims with their own #lastnightinsweden posts, the growing uncertainty about whether the press or the President is telling the truth is no joke."

Image: The President claimed Sweden had faced problems after adopting an open-door immigration policy

Reacting to Mr Trump's original remarks, Sweden's foreign ministry spokeswoman Catarina Axelsson said the government was not aware of any "terror-linked major incidents".

Meanwhile, Mr Bildt tweeted: "What has he been smoking?"

Addressing the President directly, Swedish tabloid Aftonbladet printed a list of several events that did occur on Friday - including a man being treated for severe burns, an avalanche warning and police chasing a drunken driver.