With Sweden’s accession, NATO is expanding its defense capabilities. It’s not just about the size of the armed forces, but also about their armament.
The most important things at a glance
It has been 21 months since Sweden applied to join NATO. It should actually happen very quickly, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced in May 2022. But Turkey first blocked Sweden’s accession and demanded the extradition of Kurdish opposition members in order to approve it. Shortly after Turkey ended its blockade in January 2024, the US government initiated the sale of F-16 fighter jets to Ankara.
And Hungary around Prime Minister Viktor Orbán also stood in the way for a long time. On Thursday, however, it was the last remaining member state to submit its ratification decision on Sweden’s admission to the US State Department in Washington.
Sweden has now officially joined NATO. Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and Foreign Minister Tobias Billström completed the admission process on Thursday during their visit to Washington.
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As a final step, they deposited the Swedish instrument of accession with the US State Department. The ministry is responsible for registering documents relating to the North Atlantic Treaty, the alliance’s founding treaty, which is held there.
Sweden’s accession has important advantages for the military alliance, including strategic ones. An overview:
How big are Sweden’s armed forces?
As of 2022, there are around 14,700 soldiers under arms in Sweden. There are also around 11,400 reservists, as the US think tank Atlantic Council listed in December. In addition, the government can rely on more than 21,000 personnel from Hemvärnet, an organization of volunteers within the armed forces.
Sweden introduced compulsory military service around six years ago, which is largely voluntary. According to the Atlantic Council, between 5,000 and 6,000 new soldiers are recruited every year. In the future, Sweden would like to recruit up to 10,000 new recruits per year in order to increase the army to 50,000 people.
The Swedish government also increased the defense budget for 2024 by 2.2 billion euros to more than 10 billion euros. This means that Sweden meets NATO’s two percent guideline, according to which each member state invests two percent of its own gross domestic product in defense.
How is Sweden equipped militarily?
What makes Sweden important for NATO is not just the number of soldiers, but above all their training and equipment. “In contrast to accessions in recent years, Finland and Sweden are two states with ultra-modern equipment. They could make a massive contribution to the security of NATO states from day one,” military expert Carlo Masala told t-online last year.
Sweden has a well-developed and broad-based defense industry. For example, it produces the CV90 infantry fighting vehicle, which was also made available to Ukraine. The Saab fighter jets, which were developed in Sweden and represent an important backbone of the air force, are likely to be of particular importance. The Saab JAS 39 Gripen was created in the 90s, but has been continually developed further. According to a report by the Atlantic Council, Sweden has around 100 of these fighter aircraft, which are said to be characterized by low maintenance requirements. In addition, short runways are sufficient for them.
The Navy has self-developed Gotland class submarines, which are not powered by a nuclear reactor but by a diesel engine. Nevertheless, they are considered ultra-modern and can remain under water for weeks. Finally, Sweden has also continued to expand its electronic warfare capabilities. According to the Atlantic Council, these are among the most developed skills in the world when it comes to defending against cyberattacks.
