Sveriges militärstrategi : en idealtypsanalys

As a result of Russia’s increasingly confrontational and aggressive actions in Sweden’s immediate area, Sweden’s military strategic concept has been subject for an overhaul. Increased military and defence spending along with rising tensions between Russia on one side, with NATO and EU on the other, reminds of historical experiences from the Cold War era. Although the environment is partly reminiscent of the Cold War, Sweden continues to contribute with military units to operations in Africa and the Middle East. Host nation support agreements between NATO and Sweden enabled foreign units to operate within Swedish borders. Combined with deepened bilateral defence cooperations and joint planning with Finland, these actions indicate a strategy with more of an international focus. These ambiguities complicate the understanding of today’s military strategy. The purpose of this survey was therefore to contribute with insight regarding how one should categorize Sweden’s modern military strategy. This was achieved by conducting an ideal type analysis while reviewing Swedish military doctrines and political policy documents which discuss military strategy. The main results show that Sweden’s military strategy can be interpreted as a combination of previous strategies, where two parallel approaches interact with each other. Furthermore, the strategy is categorized as a national defence strategy with international ambitions, mainly due to environmental prerequisites and current demands regarding a complex security situation