Defence

On 7–18 June 2021, Denmark, Finland and Norway and Sweden, together with the United States, will host the recurring international air exercise Arctic Challenge Exercise 2021 (ACE 21). It will be the fifth year the exercise is held within the framework of Nordic cooperation. Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist will visit the exercise in Luleå on 15 June.

The defence ministers of the Northern Group, a security and defence policy forum, took part in a video conference on 9 June. The security situation in northern Europe was the main item on the agenda.

Swedish Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist and his Indian counterpart, Minister of Defence Rajnath Singh, today participated in a digital seminar focusing on defence industry cooperation between India and Sweden. In his speech, Peter Hultqvist stressed the countries’ close and long-standing bilateral relations and their growing strategic partnership, not least on defence issues.

The NATO Parliamentary Assembly’s 2021 Spring Session, hosted by the Swedish Riksdag, opened today with introductory remarks from Sweden’s Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist. He emphasised the importance of transatlantic relations to the security of Europe, and how Russia is challenging the European security order.

On 13 May, Sweden’s Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist participated in a panel discussion on the Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) and European security. The Minister highlighted the importance of bilateral and multilateral cooperation to building security and stability in Europe, and underlined the role of JEF in this.

A first meeting has taken place in a digital format between Sweden’s Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist and his Estonian counterpart, the new Minister of Defence Kalle Laanet. Among the items on the agenda were the security situation in the neighbourhood and development of the bilateral defence cooperation between Sweden and Estonia.

On 7 April, the Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist, together with defence ministers from several other participating countries, took part in an international digital meeting on Task Force Takuba, a multinational special forces task force to which Sweden is contributing a 150-strong unit.

An increase of the annual defence budget by 85 percent from 2015 to 2025. A new and larger war-time organisation, six new training establishments and new procurements. The Swedish Minister for Defence, Peter Hultqvist, presented the largest investment in Sweden’s defence capabilities in 70 years to international media on April 7.

Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist took part in the Meeting of NATO Ministers of Defence on 17 February held via videoconference. Mr Hultqvist and Finland’s Minister for Defence Antti Kaikkonen were among those specially invited to attend one of the sessions.