Located in the middle of the Baltic sea Swedish island of Gotland as before, from all sides blown by the harsh winter winds.
more than 20 years of Gotland in the strategic sense of little value, but because of increasingly unpredictable Russian foreign policy today it is once again the center of attention.
This is – a new page in the centuries-old military history of the island, and Lieutenant Colonel Stefan Pettersson, whom I met here, can not hide his excitement
“This is almost a dream come true”, -. it says
After 10 years in the “civilian” Pettersson again wearing a military uniform, getting ready to start to the command of the defense of the island.
He examines a snowy landscape, recalling here many years ago were the teachings and with difficulty believes in the reality of the situation.
“I’ve always wanted to go back to the army. Make it on Gotland, to found a new division – what could be better “, -. It says
The new defense Gotland squad, is expected to be formed by the end of next year will be held here the service of 300 soldiers..
Building the infrastructure, even for such a relatively small contingent takes time. The Swedish military, 20 years recalls of Gotland, begins here from scratch.
The former army barracks here has long been refurbished under the government offices.
located in the depths of the forest hangar equipped with air conditioning, waiting for their crews of 14 German tanks “Leopard”.
But this is a little reminiscent of Gotland during the cold war, when there were 15 deployed 20 thousand soldiers. However, the authorities claim that, if necessary, reinforcements here can be deployed quickly enough
Restless Baltic
“You are between NATO and Russia. – says Petterson -. Gotland in the center of it all “.
even though” all “still does not mean a return to the realities of the cold war, on the Baltic Sea environment is becoming more troubled
. Swedish officials say that Russian warplanes routinely violate the airspace of the country. In 2014, all Sweden fascinated watching the search for the Russian submarine, signs of the presence of that found in the waters of the Stockholm archipelago.
“We are seeing an increased number of military exercises, increased military activity in the Baltic sea, – said the Minister of Defence of Sweden, Peter Hultkvist -. We see other manifestations of activity, flights in the immediate vicinity of our aircraft “
it is one thing -. see increased Russian military activity, and the other – to understand what is behind all this. Nobody in Sweden does not believe that Russia will make an unprovoked attack on any country outside the former Soviet Union, but Moscow’s behavior becomes more unpredictable.
“We had anticipated the possibility of the annexation of the Crimea? We knew that they were going to start something in the east of Ukraine? ” – Says the Supreme Commander of the Swedish Armed Forces Mikael Byuden
“This is one of the most serious challenges facing us: to understand what they’re up to, and why do they do it?”. -. He adds
Some analysts believe that Russia’s behavior has more to do with the need to strengthen Putin’s position at home than to test the strength of the Swedish Defense
But, whatever. an explanation of what is happening, the recent events have forced the Swedish government to increase spending on defense and after two decades during which the Stockholm gave priority to international operations, re-focus on regional security issues.
Gotland:
- The largest Swedish island with an area of 2994 km².
- Located about 100 km from the mainland Sweden.
- The population of approximately 57 thousand. Of these, 24,000 live in Visby.
- The island of Gotland and the other areas of the same province is less than one percent of the total land area of Sweden.
Shall NATO?
The situation has also generated a lively debate about whether Sweden should join NATO.
opinion polls conducted in the past year, suggests that the first time in almost half of Swedes in favor of joining the North Atlantic alliance. Opponents of this decision a little less.
The situation in Sweden is in this sense has changed dramatically in recent years. In 2012, less than one-fifth of the population favored the accession to NATO.
Russian behavior partially explains the sharp change of public opinion, says the Swedish Defense University employee in Stockholm Jacob Westberg.
“The main factor – a growing awareness of the sad state of the Swedish armed forces, if necessary, to defend the country “, – says he
” will last a week “
in December 2012 chief of staff has caused chaos and confusion, saying that in case of an attack on Sweden, its armed forces can only hold out for a week
“this caused an emotional debate, -. Vestberg says -.? is this true is it really all that bad? But it was just so “.
The military command still burned with shame over the incident in 2013, dubbed the “Russian Easter”. Then six Russian combat aircraft simulated attack on Stockholm and the Swedish Air Force in response failed to lift into the air a single fighter.
Right now, Sweden is working closely with the NATO member countries. Its armed forces are better suited for joint operations with NATO than some members of the military alliance. In 2011, the Swedish aircraft “Gripen” participated in the NATO Libya operation.
Nevertheless, this country has not fought since 1814 and is proud of its neutrality, it is in no hurry to make the seemingly logical step.
Despite the close relationship with NATO, says Jacob Westberg, Sweden hopes to defend the expense of others
“We allow the security of our country depend on other countries’ ability to prevent further Russian aggression”. – he explains.
Total defense system
in 2013, during the operation “Russian Easter” Sweden could only rely on two Danish fighters took off from NATO air base in Lithuania, where they have been deployed as part of a rapid response program.
as long as Sweden is not fully integrated into the common Baltic region a defense system, said Westberg, to Stockholm will not be treated as a completely reliable partner.
Meanwhile, on Gotland is one of the former colleagues of Lieutenant Colonel Patterson, a retired colonel Joachim Martell, calls the interest of the Swedish government to the island “a good start”.
But Martell, who served on Gotland for 15 years, says that this is not enough
“it is important to have a … more strategic understanding of the role of the island as part of the defense system in which we are integrated”, -. says he
“For. clarity – it is part of the NATO system in which Sweden should be integrated more than now, “- says a retired colonel Joachim Martell
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