The Road To Alignment: Prospects Of Finnish and Swedish NATO Memberships

The 18th of May 2022 marked a major moment in the history of Finland and Sweden. After years of commitment to neutrality and non-alignment, both countries handed their official letters of application to join NATO. Their applications were warmly welcomed by most of the Allies, except for Turkey. Even though nothing has been concretised yet, the prospects of such an integration seem as exciting as they seem challenging.

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Sweden to Bolster Interoperability with Neighbours with the Common Armoured Vehicle System (CAVS) Programme

Six weeks after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine and as talks are getting louder about a possible integration of Sweden into NATO, the Försvarsmakten (Swedish Armed Forces) announced on 4 April 2022 that it had signed a technical agreement with Finland, Estonia, and Latvia to cooperate in a joint-procurement effort. These countries will thus jointly develop a new 6×6 armoured personnel carrier (APC) under the Finnish-led Common Armoured Vehicle System (CAVS) programme, in cooperation with the Finnish armoured vehicle manufacturer Patria.

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Russian assertions are causing concerns in Sweden and Finland again

Over the past few weeks, the discussion over the future of Ukraine has widely caught the attention, especially in Europe, where President Putin and Biden are meeting to re-draw the map of security priorities of the European continent. The increasing military activity of Moscow near the Ukrainian border and its demands can be interpreted as a return to the “Cold-War spheres of influence”.

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Greater Swedish land force presence in Ukraine? A new bilateral security possibility 

On 16 November, Swedish Minister of Defence Peter Hultqvist made a statement regarding the further possibility of Swedish land force involvement in the Ukrainian conflict. This comes as a potential continuation of the Canadian Armed Forces-led operation UNIFIER. Formed as a wider Multinational Joint Commission, a larger body composed of the US, UK, Canada, Sweden, Poland, Lithuania, and Denmark, it aims to reform Ukraine's military. So far this reform process has involved the training of 10,000 Ukrainian land force troops.

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Read more about the article Swedish Totalförsvaret Strategy and the Case for a New AFV
Tungtransportkompaniet - Försvarsmakten

Swedish Totalförsvaret Strategy and the Case for a New AFV

In December 2020, the Riksdag (Swedish Parliament) announced its latest defence plan: Totalförsvaret 2021-2025 (Total Defence 2021-2025). This plan is based on the possibility of an imminent attack or a regional conflict that could affect Swedish national security. The plan makes important justifications for the rethinking of national defence in a country with a longstanding tradition of military neutrality.

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