Sweden will boost its military defence by almost a third of its current capacity by 2030, with additional funding for civil defence, ammunition, spare parts and workshops.
By 2030, Sweden plans to increase its armed forces from 88,000 to 115,000 personnel, including professional soldiers, conscripts, civilian employees and the Home Guard, Swedish Defence Minister Pål Jonson announced on Tuesday.
“We are in serious times. There is an urgent need to build a stronger defence,” Jonson said as he presented his defence bill for 2025 to 2030.
The new bill is based on reports from the Swedish parliament’s defence committee, which brought it forward by a year following a broad consensus across political lines.
“This is so that we can respond more strongly and effectively to the changes in the world around us. First and foremost, Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, but also our NATO integration,” Jonson added.
After Russia invaded Ukraine in 2022, Sweden and Finland applied to join NATO, with Sweden becoming the latest country to join in March, ending 200 years of military non-alignment.
The bill sets aside SEK 174 billion (€15.3 billion) for military defence and SEK 37.5 billion (€3.3 billion) for civil defence over the five years – investments the government says are justified by the current tense geopolitical landscape.
The investments will mean that Sweden will spend 2.6% of GDP on defence in 2028, an increase of 0.4 percentage points, which Jonson says is in line with NATO’s preliminary wishes for Sweden’s warfighting capability.
Strategic endurance
According to the Swedish Defence Ministry, much of the focus of the bill is on extending the service life of combat units rather than buying new weapons systems.
The bill, therefore, emphasises the need to purchase equipment, especially ammunition such as artillery shells and fighter missiles for combat aircraft.
Special investment is therefore being made in air defence, particularly in anti-drone and maritime air defence.
“We have a good defence system, but it is too small and more equipment is needed”, said Defence Committee spokesman Mikael Oscarsson during the press conference.
Strengthening endurance and resilience is also emphasised on the civilian side, with Civil Affairs Minister Carl-Oskar Bohlin describing the investment in civil defence proposed in the bill as a “paradigm shift”.
The government also wants to strengthen society’s ability to cope with war in electronic communications, transport, food and water supply, energy supply, health, care and emergency services – sectors Bohlin says are vital to Sweden’s ability to preserve society.
“Total defence is for all Swedes,” he concluded.
(Charles Szumski | Euractiv.com)
Source: euractiv.com
