Support for Ukraine

The election manifesto establishes that Sweden shall be a voice for peace and justice, not for increased militarisation, and the party programme explicitly opposes militarisation and arms race. A binding commitment to donate JAS fighter jets means an escalation of Swedish military supplies that the plan does not support. The plan instead points towards peace, disarmament and fewer weapons in circulation.

• no to increased militarisationdecisive»Vänsterpartiet anser att Sverige ska vara en röst för fred och rättvisa, inte för ökad militarisering.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Left Party considers that Sweden shall be a voice for peace and justice, not for increased militarisation.”
• against arms race»Vi vänder oss emot militarisering och kapprustning.« (party programme ↗)“We oppose militarisation and arms race.”
• peace and disarmament»Världen behöver gå mot fred, nedrustning« (party programme ↗)“The world needs to move towards peace, disarmament”
• peace policy as foundation»Vänsterpartiet står för fred« (party programme ↗)“Left Party stands for peace”

The election manifesto states that Sweden in all circumstances must stand up for Ukraine and against Russia's invasion war, which speaks for giving Ukraine the material support that most effectively strengthens the country's defence capacity. The counter-proposal requires precisely an early and clear message about JAS aircraft to strengthen Ukraine's air defence. The plan does not mention individual weapon systems, but its principled stance on Ukraine's right to repel attacks points to support.

• unwavering support for Ukrainedecisive»Sverige måste i alla lägen stå upp för Ukraina och mot det ryska invasionskriget.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden must in all circumstances stand up for Ukraine and against Russia's invasion war.”
• right to repel attacks»Ingen stat eller terrorgrupp får med militär eller ekonomisk styrka tvinga andra stater till« (party programme ↗)“No state or terrorist group may by military or economic force force other states to”
• worsened security situation»Samtidigt har Rysslands anfallskrig kraftigt försämrat säkerheten i vårt närområde.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Meanwhile, Russia's aggressive war has greatly worsened security in our neighbourhood.”
• continued international cooperation»Vi vill fortsätta internationella samarbeten och utveckla cyberförsvaret och underrättelseförmågan.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want to continue international cooperation and develop cyber defence and intelligence capacity.”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The plan's core commitment in this area is phased-out arms exports and that exports of military equipment to countries in armed conflict should be abolished. Giving JAS aircraft to a country in ongoing war goes directly against this commitment, as does the line on military non-alignment and disarmament. The plan therefore speaks against the counter-proposal's demand for a decision on JAS aircraft already in autumn.

• no military equipment to conflict countriesdecisive»Export av vapen och annan krigsmateriel till diktaturer, länder som befinner sig i väpnad konflikt eller där grova och omfattande kränkningar av mänskliga rättigheter förekommer ska avskaffas.« (party programme ↗)“Export of weapons and other military equipment to dictatorships, countries in armed conflict or where severe and widespread violations of human rights occur should be abolished.”
• phased-out arms exports»Sverige ska bidra till militär nedrustning i världen. Miljöpartiet de grönas mål är därför en avvecklad vapenexport.« (party programme ↗)“Sweden should contribute to military disarmament in the world. The Green Party's goal is therefore phased-out arms exports.”
• military non-alignment and disarmament»Samtidigt vill vi att Sverige behåller sin militära alliansfrihet för att kunna fortsätta arbeta mot kärnvapen, för nedrustning och kunna bedriva en självständig utrikespolitik där vi står upp för mänskliga rättigheter.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“At the same time, we want Sweden to maintain its military non-alignment to be able to continue working against nuclear weapons, for disarmament and to conduct an independent foreign policy where we stand up for human rights.”
• peace before military means»Ingen nation kan hota sig till säkerhet eller kriga sig till fred.« (party programme ↗)“No nation can threaten itself to security or war itself to peace.”

The election manifesto states that the struggle against authoritarian forces is sometimes waged with weapons and that Russia's war of aggression threatens all of Europe's security, and that Sweden should strengthen its defence and complete NATO membership. The plan thus sees Ukraine's defence as part of Sweden's own security and advocates forceful action rather than waiting. Therefore, the plan supports the demand to donate JAS aircraft to strengthen Ukraine's air defence, even though individual weapons systems are not mentioned.

• support against Russia's war of aggressiondecisive»Ibland förs kampen med vapen, som i fallet med Rysslands anfallskrig, som hotar Ukrainas överlevnad och hela Europas säkerhet.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sometimes the struggle is waged with weapons, as in the case of Russia's war of aggression, which threatens Ukraine's survival and all of Europe's security.”
• strengthen defence and NATO»Centerpartiet vill rusta försvaret, stärka Sveriges civila beredskap och fullfölja inträdet i Nato.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The Centre Party wants to strengthen defence, strengthen Sweden's civil preparedness and complete accession to NATO.”
• press Russia hard»Stryp Putins krigskassa nu.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Choke Putin's war chest now.”
• solidarity with Ukraine»enskilda har gemensamt skänkt många miljarder kronor till Ukraina« (2022 manifesto ↗)“individuals have together donated many billions of kronor to Ukraine.”

The plan makes increased military support to Ukraine an explicit government commitment and explicitly criticizes attempts to stop Swedish arms deliveries. A decision to donate JAS aircraft is exactly such a strengthening of military support that the plan promises. The plan does not mention JAS specifically, which is why the conclusion is derived from the commitment to increased military support.

• increased military support to Ukrainedecisive»En ny regering ska vara garanten för att Ukraina ges ökat ekonomiskt, politiskt och militärt stöd.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“A new government shall be the guarantor that Ukraine is given increased economic, political and military support.”
• defense of arms deliveries»har försökt stoppa Sveriges vapenleveranser till Ukraina står vi för alternativet« (2022 manifesto ↗)“have tried to stop Sweden's arms deliveries to Ukraine, we stand for the alternative”
• Russian withdrawal as the goal»Sverige ska helhjärtat stödja Ukraina i att Rysslands oprovocerade anfallskrig måste sluta i fullständig rysk militär reträtt.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden shall wholeheartedly support Ukraine in that Russia's unprovoked war of aggression must end in complete Russian military withdrawal.”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The party programme establishes that aggression should never be rewarded and that no one may abandon people subjected to acts of war, and that Sweden cannot remain neutral when neighbouring countries are attacked. From this follows support for strengthening the attacked nation's defence capability, which the counter-proposal's demand about JAS fighter jets aims at. However, the plan says nothing about weapon systems or timing, and the demand for own deterrent capability pulls in the opposite direction. Hence low certainty.

• aggression should not be rewardeddecisive»Aggression får aldrig löna sig och ingen har rätt, i en attityd av passiv neutralitet, att överge människor som utsätts för krigshandlingar.« (party programme ↗)“Aggression should never be rewarded and no one has the right, in an attitude of passive neutrality, to abandon people subjected to acts of war.”
• no neutrality in the neighbouring region»Vi kan inte stå neutrala om våra grannländer anfalls.« (party programme ↗)“We cannot remain neutral if our neighbouring countries are attacked.”
• right to self-defence»Rätten till liv, kroppslig integritet och respekt för den personliga värdigheten innefattar även rätten att försvara sig mot angrepp.« (party programme ↗)“The right to life, bodily integrity and respect for personal dignity also includes the right to defend oneself against attacks.”
• own deterrent capability»Försvarsmakten ska ha en sådan styrka, sammansättning, beredskap och gruppering att den kan verka krigsavhållande vid säkerhetspolitiska kriser i närområdet.« (party programme ↗)“The Armed Forces shall have such strength, composition, preparedness and positioning that it can act as a deterrent in the event of security policy crises in the neighbouring region.”

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The election manifesto establishes that Sweden shall wholeheartedly stand up for Ukraine, even with continued weapons deliveries, and points out fighter jets as an area where Sweden can contribute more than most. That speaks to an expanded military support of the kind the counter-proposal demands. However, the plan does not take a position on JAS donation specifically or on timing, and simultaneously wants to strengthen the air force's own material.

• continued weapons deliveries to Ukrainedecisive»Sverige ska helhjärtat stå upp för Ukraina, även med fortsatta vapenleveranser.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden shall wholeheartedly stand up for Ukraine, even with continued weapons deliveries.”
• Swedish fighter jets as contribution»Vi kan bidra mer än de allra flesta exempelvis när det gäller stridsflyg och ubåtar, men även inom telekom och artificiell intelligens.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We can contribute more than most, for example when it comes to fighter jets and submarines, but also in telecommunications and artificial intelligence.”
• strengthened own material capability(2022 manifesto)

flags: citat_ej_verifierat

The plan takes no explicit position on what the committee actually decided — often because the committee's reason was procedural. The stance is derived and fully cited, but it does not show the party broke a commitment.

The plan's defence policy commitment concerns building Swedish capability: restore total defence and invest in acquisition and maintenance of own materiel. A binding decision to donate JAS fighters already takes materiel out of its own capability-building, and the plan says nothing about relinquishing Swedish combat air capacity. In foreign policy the plan binds Sweden to protecting Swedish interests rather than to specific materiel donations.

• own materiel supply firstdecisive»Satsa på uppgradering, nyanskaffning och vidmakthållande av materiel« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Invest in upgrading, acquisition and maintenance of materiel”
• restored total defence»Sverigedemokraterna vill återupprätta totalförsvaret och att Sverige ska ha förmåga att möta potentiella angripare.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The Sweden Democrats wish to restore total defence and that Sweden shall have the capability to meet potential attackers.”
• Swedish interests foremost»Värna svenska intressen i internationella sammanhang« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Protect Swedish interests in international contexts”