National security strategy and investigation of Sweden's security policy

The plan says nothing about establishing historical security policy investigations. The closest lying principle is that the party opposes militarization and arms escalation and wants Sweden to be a voice for peace and disarmament; the counter-proposal's demand rests instead on the fact that a period of significant disarmament needs to be scrutinized as a problem ahead of rearmament. Based on the closest lying principle the plan therefore speaks against the demand, but the basis is weak.

• against militarization and arms escalationdecisive»och deeskalering. Vi vänder oss emot militarisering och kapprustning.« (party programme ↗)“and de-escalation. We oppose militarization and arms escalation.”
• voice for peace, not militarization»Vänsterpartiet anser att Sverige ska vara en röst för fred och rättvisa, inte för ökad militarisering.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Left Party believes that Sweden should be a voice for peace and justice, not increased militarization.”
• disarmament as goal»Världen behöver gå mot fred, nedrustning« (party programme ↗)“The world needs to move towards peace, disarmament”

The plan says that the new security situation requires a restructuring of Swedish security policy and that the pace of rearmament shall increase further, but it says nothing about investigations or strategy documents. The closest underlying principle is that security policy shall be based on an independent assessment of the country's peace and independence, which speaks for examining an earlier disarmament period. The basis is weak and the conclusion uncertain.

• restructured security policydecisive»Dagens nya situation kräver en omläggning av svensk säkerhetspolitik.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Today's new situation requires a restructuring of Swedish security policy.”
• increased rearmament pace»Takten i upprustningen ska öka ytterligare.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The pace of rearmament shall increase further.”
• independent security policy assessment»Svensk säkerhetspolitik har som syfte att bevara vårt lands fred och självständighet« (party programme ↗)“Swedish security policy aims to preserve our country's peace and independence”

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 says nothing about historical investigations into security policy. The closest commitments are that Sweden should take initiatives toward international disarmament, disarm based on current threat assessments, and retain military alliance freedom. The counter-proposal's investigation, by contrast, is based on the view that the disarmament period was a mistake to learn from, which runs counter to the plan's line. The evidence is however weak.

• lead in disarmamentdecisive»Sverige ska ta initiativ till internationell nedrustning och bör gå före och nedrusta« (party programme ↗)“Sweden should take initiatives toward international disarmament and should lead and disarm”
• military alliance freedom»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 retain its military alliance freedom in order to continue working against nuclear weapons, for disarmament, and to conduct an independent foreign policy where we stand up for human rights.”
• civil defence prioritized»satsa en större andel av försvarets pengar på det civila försvaret, och öka anslagen till krisberedskap.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“invest a larger share of defence funds in civil defence, and increase allocations for emergency preparedness.”

The plan says nothing about historical scrutiny commissions, so the position is derived from the closest-lying principles. The manifesto wants to strengthen defence and complete NATO accession and the party programme warns against assuming disarmament and demilitarization, which makes a review of the lessons of the disarmament period logical. The requirement for increased transparency points the same way.

• strengthen defence and NATO membershipdecisive»Centerpartiet vill rusta försvaret, stärka Sveriges civila beredskap och fullfölja inträdet i Nato.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The Center Party wants to strengthen defence, strengthen Sweden's civilian preparedness and complete NATO accession.”
• warning against disarmament»Vi kan inte förutsätta att avspänning och demilitarisering ska prägla vår värld.« (party programme ↗)“We cannot assume that disarmament and demilitarization will characterize our world.”
• increased openness and scrutiny»Sverige ska bli ännu mer transparent.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden shall become even more transparent.”

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 does not address historical review investigations of Swedish security policy. The nearest principle is that the party condemns earlier disarmament as a direct mistake and simultaneously holds that scrutiny and critical debate are democracy's lifeblood, which speaks for that very period being investigated. The foundation is weak and the position therefore uncertain.

• criticism of earlier disarmamentdecisive»I nära åtta år ville dagens regering stoppa en stor upprustning av försvaret och den lovade att aldrig söka ett medlemskap i Nato. Den gjorde fel.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“For nearly eight years the current government wanted to stop a major military buildup and promised it would never seek NATO membership. It was wrong.”
• scrutiny strengthens democracy»Demokratins livsluft är att fler granskar, diskuterar och pekar ut samhällets brister.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Democracy's lifeblood is that more scrutinize, discuss, and point out society's shortcomings.”
• strengthened defense capability»Sverige behöver ett betydligt starkare militärt försvar än i dag.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden needs significantly stronger military defense than today.”

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 says nothing about historical reviews or strategy documents. The closest principle is that security policy shall be characterized by foresight and comprehensive solutions and that political decisions shall be made according to the principle of stewardship, that is with long-term consequences in view. Reviewing a previous disarmament period is in line with this, but the basis in the plan is weak.

• foresighted security policydecisive»Sveriges säkerhetspolitik ska präglas av samarbete, förutseende och helhetslösningar« (party programme ↗)“Sweden's security policy shall be characterized by cooperation, foresight and comprehensive solutions”
• stewardship and long-term thinking»Alla politiska beslut bör fattas i enlighet med förvaltarskapsprincipen« (party programme ↗)“All political decisions should be made in accordance with the principle of stewardship”
• practical wisdom»en kritisk urskiljningsförmåga att avgöra vad som är rätt och fel i olika valsituationer« (party programme ↗)“a critical discernment to determine what is right and wrong in different choice situations”

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 diagnosis is that the run-down defence became insufficient in a turbulent world, and the programme emphasises that policy must learn from history and reconsider previous decisions. The counter-proposal demands an investigation of precisely the period of severe cutbacks that the plan criticises. The plan does not state a position on the form of investigation, but its principles point towards the experiences being examined, so the conclusion is support.

• the cutbacks were wrongdecisive»Ett nedrustat försvar har blivit otillräckligt i en allt mer orolig« (party programme ↗)“A run-down defence has become insufficient in an increasingly turbulent”
• review foreign policy tools»I en föränderlig omvärld finns skäl att se över Sveriges samlade utrikespolitiska verktygslåda.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“In a changing world, there is reason to review Sweden's combined foreign policy toolbox.”
• coordinated security policy governance»Inrätta ett nationellt säkerhetsråd på Statsrådsberedningen« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Establish a national security council at the Office of the Prime Minister”
• reconsider implemented policy»beredskap för att utvärdera, ompröva, förändra och förbättra« (party programme ↗)“readiness to evaluate, reconsider, change and improve”

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's defense section is based on the dismantling of the military since the end of the 1990s being a serious mistake that has cost in capital destruction and skills loss, and that total defense must now be rebuilt. An investigation examining precisely the period when downsizing occurred aligns with that assessment and with ensuring that lessons are learned. The plan does not however comment on the need for a unified strategy document.

• criticism of military downsizingdecisive»Sedan slutet av 90 – talet har socialistiska och borgerliga regeringar monterat ned försvaret och successivt sänkt både anslag och ambitionsnivå.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Since the end of the 90s, socialist and bourgeois governments have dismantled the military and successively cut both appropriations and ambition level.”
• expeditionary defense's costs»Den förändrade inriktningen från totalförsvar till insatsförsvar under 2000-talets början har inneburit stora kostnader i kapitalförstöring, kompetenstapp och omställningskostnader.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The shift from total defense to expeditionary defense in the early 2000s has meant major costs in capital destruction, skills loss, and transition costs.”
• rebuilt total defense»Återupprätta ett totalförsvar som är rustat för krig« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Rebuild a total defense that is equipped for war”