As of: March 9, 2024, 6:48 a.m
By: Felix Busjaeger
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Although Sweden has a smaller military, it brings technological know-how and modern weapons systems to the NATO alliance.
(Symbolic photo) © Jonathan Nackstrand/AFP
Sweden is a NATO partner: Stockholm is strengthening the alliance with the most modern weapons and tanks against Russia.
An overview of combat power.
Stockholm – For a long time, Sweden was a country with neutral status.
This tradition has been maintained for centuries, but the Ukraine War and the consequences of Vladimir Putin's aggression have massively shifted the geopolitical situation since 2022.
In response, Sweden has now joined NATO.
True to the motto “All for one, one for all”, the defense alliance has always been an important key to global security.
The partners undertake to protect each other in the event of a defense.
As a result of Sweden's accession to NATO, the alliance's military strength is now growing - because far in the north of Europe, the government in Stockholm has built up considerable combat power in recent years.
Sweden is a NATO member: the Baltic Sea becomes a NATO sea - the country provides military know-how
NATO now has 32 members – twice as many as at the end of the Cold War.
With the addition of Sweden, the defense alliance ended its latest round of expansion on Thursday, March 7th.
It was launched last year when Finland became a member.
As with Finland, the Swedish decision was triggered by the Russian invasion of Ukraine in spring 2022. Many people who had previously been against NATO membership changed their minds as a result of the events.
Sweden initially offers the alliance a geostrategic advantage and sends a clear message to Kremlin boss Vladimir Putin.
The entire Baltic Sea coast - with the exception of the coast of Russia and its exclave Kaliningrad - is now NATO territory.
On the one hand, this makes it possible to monitor critical pipelines and cables beneath the surface.
On the other hand, Russia's fleet in the Baltic Sea is coming under increasing pressure and is finding it difficult to operate in the waters.
Army in Sweden: Joining NATO strengthens the alliance's combat power
As the
German Press Agency
writes in an article on Sweden's NATO accession, the country's long-standing freedom from alliances ensured that Sweden had to rely on its own military capacities.
The Swedish military has, among other things, barely modified 120 Leopard 2 tanks, which are called Stridsvagn 122 in the Scandinavian country.
In the air, it relies, among other things, on Swedish Jas 39 Gripen fighter jets.
Sweden has long been considered a small military power.
The country only has 10 million inhabitants and spent only 1.54 percent of its GDP on defense last year.
Despite spending little on the military, Sweden has
still managed to build a world-class military-industrial complex in recent years, according to
Politico .
Among other things, the Saab JAS 39 Gripen and the Stridsvagn 122 single-engine supersonic fighters are manufactured in the country.
There are also recoilless Carl Gustav rifles, AT4 anti-tank weapons as well as Gotland-class submarines and RBS15 anti-ship missiles.
Sweden joins NATO: military at a glance
Over 1000 armored vehicles for troop transport.
Almost 15,000 soldiers.
More than 260 artillery systems.
Almost 120 Stridsvagn 122 main battle tanks.
Around 100 Swedish Jas 39 Gripen fighter jets.
Five submarines, 11 corvettes, 11 mine countermeasure ships, 13 patrol boats.
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How strong will NATO become if Sweden joins?
Military brings advanced weapon systems
For NATO, Sweden's accession does not initially mean that the alliance's military will be significantly strengthened in terms of personnel.
However, "Sweden brings to NATO, above all, a well-equipped army, over a hundred advanced fighter aircraft, a modern navy [...] and a technologically advanced defense industry," said Neil Melvin of London's Royal United Services Institute.
The country has also already announced that it wants to increase spending on the military to almost two percent of GDP in 2024.
In addition to its technological strength, Sweden is also bringing further know-how about Russia into the defense alliance by joining NATO.
Minna Ålander, a political scientist and security expert at the Finnish Institute of International Affairs, said this, among others, on the occasion of the latest NATO maneuvers and the previous accession debate last month.
The expert also explained to the
Tagesspiegel
that Finland and Sweden have “filled the gap between the Baltic states and Norway”.
Russia feels threatened by Sweden's accession to NATO: alliance denies fears
As a result of Sweden's accession to NATO, the alliance's sphere of influence has grown significantly.
At the same time, NATO emphasizes that there is no reason for Russia to feel threatened by northern expansion.
The alliance also contradicts representations that the alliance wants to literally encircle Russia.
Russian propaganda repeatedly seized on NATO's activities and threatened the West with a military response because of corresponding fears.
According to NATO information, of the more than 20,000 kilometer long Russian land border, even after the expansion, only around eleven percent are currently on a NATO border.
(fbu/dpa)