© Eddie Mulholland/The TelegraphSweden's military newcomers
Sweden's first new conscripts "prepare to repel Russian invaders," claims a sensational headline in the UK's Telegraph newspaper - a headline which would almost make you believe there was some fact-based reason to expect an imminent Russian invasion of Sweden.
The Swedish parliament voted to reintroduce the draft in 2017, with the government citing a "deteriorated" security situation in Europe and admitting that the army "had trouble staffing the military units on a voluntary basis."
The Telegraph article quotes Colonel Bo Stennabb, the commanding officer of a regiment of fresh-faced 19 and 20-year old conscripts. Stennabb says that "more aggressive behaviour" by Russia in the Baltic Sea, including Russian incursions into Swedish airspace (which Russia has denied), has made Europe less safe. Of course, no mention was made in the article of US military and spy planes which frequently fly close to Russia's own borders in exactly the same area.
Anyway, aside from the usual tit-for-tat engagements between Russian and NATO planes over the Baltic, there has been no indication whatsoever that Moscow has any interest in invading Sweden - a fact of which the Telegraph is likely well aware. Still, no point wasting an opportunity to fear-monger about the Russian bear, right?
The news raised some eyebrows, however, with many surprised to learn of Russia's impending invasion of Sweden.
Russian 'invasion' hysteria in Sweden kicked off in 2014 when the country's navy carried out a fruitless search for a Russian submarine, which had allegedly been spotted off the Swedish coast, until it later turned out that the vessel was a work boat. When a television mast came down in Sweden in 2016, some media immediately jumped to the conclusion that Russia could be the culprit.
Inside the front door of every apartment block there was a government notice on the wall entitled "Om kriget com" (If war comes) detailing evacuation routes to be taken to places of relative safety. Those in the reserve knew exactly where to report and their duties. It all seemed very well organised and exhibited a degree of defence competence that I thought remarkable. There was no comparable procedure in the UK where threats of war lay in many directions.
But that was the point in Sweden - they only faced one threat , one power capable pf attacking them. At that time it was the USSR, Soviet Russia, just across the Baltic Sea. Being, a highly intelligent and practical people with great historical experience of war, they prepared themselves against such an eventuality. They were also realists. Aware that they could not expect to defeat a Soviet Russian invasion, the basis of their defence policy was simple. "We may not be strong enough to beat them but we can make it so very expensive for them to try that they will think twice before trying." So preparation had priority and safety of the population, their strength, top of the list with the task of fully arming themselves.
Sweden remained, still may, unique in the Scandinavian countries of designing and buiding vehicles of all kinds, weapons of all kinds and fighter aircraft of