If Turkey and Hungary keep their promises and their parliaments, as expected, approve Sweden’s accession to NATO, the Alliance will unite. a powerful modern army with its own military industry It’s run by companies like Saab, which makes warriors like 39 or deep-sea submarines Gotlands. High-tech that will serve to spy on the Alliance’s northern front and keep the Russian Baltic Sea threat at bay.
in Swedish position 37th in the ranking of the Armed Forces of 145 countries Prepared by Global Firepower (Spain 21st). In its population of just over ten million, it has a professional Army of about 25,000 (nearly one in four women).
“We believe we will contribute to the defense of the Allies. We do not have an Armed Forces as large as Finland, but We have the most advanced technologies and very strong Defense companies” told EL PERIÓDICO DE ESPAÑA of the Prensa Ibérica group: Teppo TauriainenSwedish ambassador to Spain.
Among his military capabilities, More than 70 fighter squadrons from the Air Force. These are mostly American F-35s or Saab Gripen produced and exported domestically by Sweden. This fourth-generation fighter is equipped with electronic warfare components and Artificial Intelligence to help the pilot make decisions and shoot precisely. It is about 15 meters tall and, in its two versions, allows a crew of one or two pilots so it can conduct reconnaissance as well as enemy intercept maneuvers.
The Royal Swedish Navy has about 400 ships and five submarines, but he wants there to be a dozen by 2040. At Kockums shipyards, Saab is developing a series of self-contained air-propelled Gotland submarines that allow up to weeks of submersion, previously only possible with nuclear ones. For example, it is designed to withstand the icy waters of these seas, which are very different from the waters of the Mediterranean.
The army has 121 tanks, mainly the German Leopard 2A. In total, Sweden spends more annually 8,300 million euros, 1.4% of its GDP. They promised to reach the symbolic figure of 2% by 2028 (adopted by the Central Powers at the 2014 Wales summit). Since the war in Ukraine began, the defense budget has increased by almost a fifth.
Multiplier effect with Scandinavians
“Perhaps more important than their contribution as a country, The multiplier effect it has with the Scandinavian countries, Finland (newly joining NATO) and Denmark, Norway and Iceland (they already belong to the club)”, explains from the Alliance summit in Vilnius Charlie Salonius, Analyst at the Finnish Institute of International Relations. They have already signed agreements to jointly patrol the Baltic Sea skies they share. “They will act as one air fleet, which is a giant leap: The most combat-ready air combat squadron in all of EuropeThanks to the F-35 aircraft or the Saab Gripen,” adds Salons. They will be able to integrate training, material procurement and force deployment planning to establish the Alliance’s lead in northern Europe.
Of course, Sweden still has a long way to go. “It will take some time for them to get more volume for performance. military operations outside of their regional bases The analyst adds: “But this is the future and cooperation with the Finnish Armed Forces has alleviated this lack of volume.
Sweden’s involvement, a political message
Heads of State and Government meet this Tuesday and Wednesday in Vilnius (Lithuania) for the Atlantic organization’s annual summit. It exists as an object Seize Deterrence and Area Defense plans (DDA, abbreviated in English) defines expenditure and supports battalions stationed on the Alliance’s eastern flank on the Russian border.
In this context, the political message to Moscow about Stockholm’s eventual accession to the Alliance resonates. With the unification of Finland, Russia suddenly found itself on an additional 1,340 kilometer border with a NATO country. If (or rather when) joins as Sweden 32nd country of the alliance, Naval and airspace over the Baltic Sea (in front of the second Russian city, Saint Petersburg) will already be fully controlled by the Alliance countries. “If you look at the map, you see a huge gap in NATO without Sweden,” stresses Ambassador Tauriainen.
The Scandinavian country is evolving from its traditional neutrality to the weapons of NATO. aggression of its neighbor Russia. There are only two minority parties that do not favor joining the international coalition: the Greens and the Left Party. Total, They represent about 10% of the electorate. This was a progressive rapprochement accelerated by Russia’s first and second invasions of Ukraine. The political mood in Sweden began to change when Russia illegally annexed Crimea in 2014 and became part of Ukraine’s Donbas region. In May of last year, after a report from Parliament, the Social Democratic Party changed its historical stance and decided to support entry into NATO. The mold has been thrown. “What happened over the past year has changed everything for us,” the head of the Swedish mission in Spain underlines.
Only Turkey’s consent was lacking. President Recep Tayyip Erdogan lifted his veto on Finland and Sweden at the Madrid summit in July last year. However, he later refrained from sending the accession protocol to the Parliament. He complained that Stockholm harbored militants from the Turkish-Kurdish independence party PKK, which Ankara considers terrorists. He also cried out against the uprising. Washington’s arms embargo on Turkey to buy arms from Russia. All that seems to have changed this Monday, with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announcing that after his meeting with Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson it was a “historic day” and that Erdogan has (again) lifted his veto.