Defence

We, the Nordic Ministers of Defence, follow the recent developments in and around Ukraine with great concern. Recent Russian military activity, especially the exceptional military build-up along Ukraine’s borders, is a worrying development, which may have a destabilising effect on our shared security environment.

Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist has received Ukraine’s Minister of Defence, Oleksii Reznikov, and the two ministers signed a new agreement on defence cooperation between the countries. They discussed a number of urgent issues, including the serious security situation at Ukraine’s border with Russia.

Swedish Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist and Minister of Defence of Ukraine Oleksii Reznikov will hold a joint press briefing in connection with Minster Reznikov’s visit to Sweden.

Regional security and development of bilateral defence cooperation were among the agenda items when UK Secretary of State for Defence Ben Wallace visited Sweden. Bilateral talks with Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist took place in connection with the visit.

Swedish Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist and Secretary of State for Defence of the United Kingdom Ben Wallace will hold a joint press briefing in connection with Secretary Wallace’s visit to Sweden on 9-10 December, which includes a visit to Norrland Dragoon Regiment in Arvidsjaur (K4) and bilateral meetings in Stockholm.

On 15–16 November, Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist took part in the EU Foreign Affairs Council (FAC). The Ministers discussed EU training missions and met with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at a ministerial lunch. In a joint meeting with the Ministers for Foreign Affairs on 15 November the first draft of the EU Strategic Compass was discussed.

On 9 November, Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist took part in the Nordic Defence Cooperation (NORDEFCO) ministerial meeting. The meeting in Kirkkonummi, Finland was hosted by Finland’s Minister of Defence Antti Kaikkonen in conjunction with the Finnish NORDEFCO chairmanship in 2021.

On 8 November, Swedish Minister for Defence met virtually with Australian Minister for Defence Peter Dutton to discuss the security situation in the countries’ neighbourhoods and bilateral defence cooperation between Sweden and Australia.

On 21–22 October, Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist took part in the Meeting of NATO Ministers of Defence in Brussels. Mr Hultqvist was invited to a special session on cooperation between NATO and the European Union.

On 25–27 October, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and the NAC – NATO’s principal political decision-making body – will visit Sweden and Finland which are partners to NATO.

On 20 October, Sweden’s Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist will participate in a meeting with his colleagues from the other Northern Group countries. The Northern Group is a security and defence policy forum with a focus on northern Europe.

On 8 October, Sweden’s Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist welcomed his Lithuanian counterpart, Arvydas Anušauskas, for a bilateral meeting in Stockholm. The security situation in the Baltic Sea region and further cooperation between Sweden and Lithuania were among the items on the agenda.

Letter of Intent between The Minister for The Armed Forces of The French Republic and The Minister for Defence of the Kingdom of Sweden concerning The Bilateral Defence Cooperation.

The long-standing defence cooperation between Sweden and Finland was one of the themes of a defence industry seminar held at the Embassy of Finland in Stockholm. Sweden’s Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist delivered a keynote speech.

Swedish Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist today visited Joint Protector 21 in Älvdalen. Sweden is hosting the exercise held within the framework of the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) defence cooperation.

Common security challenges and how the cooperation within the European Intervention Initiative (EI2) can be developed even further were some of the agenda items when EI2’s thirteen member countries met in Stockholm. Sweden and Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist hosted this year’s annual meeting.

24 September 2021, Stockholm, Sweden

We live in uncertain times. The geopolitical challenges today are more acute and complex than in recent decades. Russia just concluded the military exercise Zapad, displaying its military capabilities with a substantial volume of forces, while highlighting in its National Security Strategy presented last July that “Russia is preparing for a long-term conflict with the West”.