Organization and Capacity

The election manifesto states that Sweden should be a voice for peace and justice, not for increased militarization, and that resources should go to welfare, climate investments and jobs instead. The party programme wants to dissolve military alliances and adapt defence with maintained neutrality, not build up capacity for deterrence purposes. A broad military buildup at sea and in the air with reinforcements along the coasts and in the Arctic therefore goes against the plan.

• no to increased militarizationdecisive»Vänsterpartiet anser att Sverige ska vara en röst för fred och rättvisa, inte för ökad militarisering.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The Left Party believes that Sweden should be a voice for peace and justice, not for increased militarization.”
• dissolve military alliances»Vänsterpartiet arbetar för militäralliansernas upplösning, ett totalt« (party programme ↗)“The Left Party works for the dissolution of military alliances, a complete”
• defence with maintained neutrality»försvaret ska med bibehållen neutralitet fortlöpande anpassas till« (party programme ↗)“defence should with maintained neutrality be continuously adapted to”
• resources to welfare instead»Att vi i Vänsterpartiet anser att mycket mer resurser ska och kan satsas på välfärd, klimatinvesteringar, vård och jobbpolitik än vad de andra partierna gör« (2022 manifesto ↗)“That we in the Left Party believe that much more resources should and can be invested in welfare, climate investments, care and job policy than what the other parties do”

The election manifesto's commitment is to powerfully strengthen Sweden's military capacity, with appropriations up to two per cent of GDP, modern equipment and enhanced military presence throughout the country, and that the pace of rearmament shall increase further. The counter-proposal's demands for enhanced capacity at sea and in the air as well as reinforcements along the coasts are an expression of the same commitment. The plan therefore supports the demand.

• powerfully strengthened military capacitydecisive»Kraftfullt stärka Sveriges militära förmåga. Anslagen till det militära försvaret ska öka till motsvarande två procent av BNP.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Powerfully strengthen Sweden's military capacity. Appropriations for military defence shall increase to the equivalent of two per cent of GDP.”
• defence of the entire country»Vi vill att ökningen ska omsättas i bland annat fler värnpliktiga, modern materiel samt förstärkt militär närvaro över hela landet.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We want the increase to be realised in among other things more military conscripts, modern equipment and enhanced military presence throughout the country.”
• increased rearmament pace»Takten i upprustningen ska öka ytterligare.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The pace of rearmament shall increase further.”
• preserve peace and independence»Svensk säkerhetspolitik har som syfte att bevara vårt lands fred och självständighet, att« (party programme ↗)“Swedish security policy aims to preserve our country's peace and independence, to”

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 places human security before territorial, asserts that no nation can war itself to peace and limits military readiness's purpose to international operations and retained knowledge. A broad strengthening of the defense organization at sea, in the air, along the Baltic coast and in the Arctic goes beyond this. The election manifesto further wants to move a larger share of defense funds to civil defense.

• human security before territorialdecisive»Vi vill se en politik som sätter mänsklig säkerhet före territoriell.« (party programme ↗)“We want to see a policy that places human security before territorial.”
• limited military readiness»Vår militära beredskap ska syfta till att kunna genomföra internationella insatser och att bibehålla kunskap om nya hot i framtiden skulle riktas mot Sverige.« (party programme ↗)“Our military readiness shall aim to conduct international operations and to retain knowledge about new threats should they be directed at Sweden in the future.”
• civil defense prioritized»satsa en större andel av försvarets pengar på det civila försvaret, och öka anslagen till krisberedskap.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“invest a larger share of defense funds in civil defense and increase appropriations for civil preparedness.”
• security through peace work»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 plan requires that military defence be equipped quickly, powerfully and long-term up to two per cent of GDP, and the party programme establishes that Sweden must be able to defend its own territory and adapt capability to new threats. The counter-proposal's requirements for strengthened capability at sea and in the air and along the Baltic Sea coast, in the Arctic and on the west coast are an application of that commitment. The plan does not point to individual capabilities, so the position is derived.

• rapid military rearmamentdecisive»Sverige ska försvaras. Vi vill rusta det militära försvaret snabbt, kraftfullt och långsiktigt.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden shall be defended. We want to equip military defence quickly, powerfully and long-term.”
• the entire country shall be defendable»Sverige måste därför kunna försvara sitt eget territorium.« (party programme ↗)“Sweden must therefore be able to defend its own territory.”
• capability adapted to threat picture»Därför måste vi också anpassa vår försvarsförmåga efter nya hot mot landet.« (party programme ↗)“Therefore we must also adapt our defence capability to new threats to the country.”
• increased defence budget»Sverige behöver satsa två procent av BNP på försvaret så snart det är praktiskt möjligt och gå med i Nato.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden needs to invest two per cent of GDP in defence as soon as practically possible and join NATO.”

The plan explicitly requires a defence budget of two per cent of GDP already in 2025 to strengthen both the army, navy and air force, and establishes that defence's main task is to defend all territory. Strengthened capacity at sea and in the air and along the Baltic coast and on the west coast is an application of this. The plan also points out the Russian war of attack as an acute threat to the security order.

• strengthened defence forcesdecisive»Vi vill därför redan 2025 se ett försvarsanslag om 2 procent av BNP och därmed skapa tillräckliga förutsättningar att stärka både armen, marinen och flygvapnet.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We therefore want already in 2025 to see a defence budget of 2 per cent of GDP and thus create sufficient conditions to strengthen both the army, navy and air force.”
• defence of all territory»Sveriges territorium och dess befolkning, ska vara avgörande för hur försvaret utformas.« (party programme ↗)“Sweden's territory and its population, shall be decisive for how defence is shaped.”
• acute threat picture»Med det ryska anfallskriget mot Ukraina – detta angrepp mot hela Europa – är hotet mot vår säkerhetsordning akut.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“With the Russian war of attack against Ukraine – this attack against all of Europe – the threat to our security order is acute.”
• contribution within NATO»Sverige ska inom Nato särskilt kunna bidra med den infrastruktur som behövs för att skapa ett nödvändigt och strategiskt djup för försvaret av Finland och Baltikum.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden shall within NATO particularly be able to contribute with the infrastructure needed to create necessary and strategic depth for defence of Finland and the Baltic states.”

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 requires that the Armed Forces have a strength, composition and organization that acts as a deterrent in the region and that the task is solved by protecting territorial integrity and border security. Strengthened capability at sea and in the air and along the Baltic coast, in the Arctic and on the west coast is precisely this. The programme also highlights economic defence, which supports the protection of trade flows.

• deterrent defence capabilitydecisive»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 organization that it can act as a deterrent during security policy crises in the region.”
• protect territorial integrity»Det sker i regel bäst genom att värna territoriell integritet och utöva gränsskydd samt värna fredstida yttre säkerhet.« (party programme ↗)“This is usually best accomplished by protecting territorial integrity and exercising border security and protecting peacetime external security.”
• protect trade flows»Det ekonomiska försvaret är en viktig del av totalförsvaret.« (party programme ↗)“Economic defence is an important part of total defence.”
• solidarity in the region»Vi kan inte stå neutrala om våra grannländer anfalls.« (party programme ↗)“We cannot remain neutral if our neighbours are attacked.”

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 commits to strengthening the army, air force and navy both in terms of capability and equipment, to better be able to defend the country and uphold territorial integrity. It also points out fighter aircraft and submarines as areas where Sweden can contribute most. The counter-proposal's requirement for strengthened capability at sea and in the air as well as along the coasts is thus precisely what the plan promises.

• strengthened defence branchesdecisive(2022 manifesto)
• territorial integrity»Försvaret måste stärkas för att vi bättre ska kunna försvara vårt land, hävda vår territoriella integritet och värna svenska intressen.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Defence must be strengthened so that we can better defend our country, uphold our territorial integrity and safeguard Swedish interests.”
• fighter aircraft and submarines»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 others for example when it comes to fighter aircraft and submarines, but also within telecommunications and artificial intelligence.”
• raised defence budgets»Verka för att försvarsanslagen uppgår till motsvarande 2 procent av BNP redan år 2025« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Work for defence appropriations to amount to equivalent to 2 per cent of GNP already in 2025”

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The stance rests on the quoted commitment in the party's own documents; the actual vote deviated. Click the quote to verify it in the document.

The plan wants to reinstate total defence so that Sweden has the capacity to meet potential attackers, invest in upgrading and procurement of equipment, and develop an Arctic policy against Russian and Chinese expansion. The counter-proposal's requirement for strengthened capacity at sea and in the air and along the Baltic coast, in the Arctic and on the west coast is in line with this. The plan therefore supports the requirement.

• capacity to meet attackersdecisive»Sverigedemokraterna vill återupprätta totalförsvaret och att Sverige ska ha förmåga att möta potentiella angripare.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The Sweden Democrats want to reinstate total defence and for Sweden to have the capacity to meet potential attackers.”
• equipment supply»Satsa på uppgradering, nyanskaffning och vidmakthållande av materiel« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Invest in upgrading, procurement and maintenance of equipment”
• shipping part of total defence»Vi behöver även stärka den svenska sjöfarten för att säkra arbets- och utbildningstillfällen men inte minst för att sjöfarten är en del av totalförsvaret.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We also need to strengthen Swedish shipping to secure employment and training opportunities but not least because shipping is part of total defence.”
• Arctic security»En tydlig Arktispolitik ska tas fram som hindrar ryska och kinesiska framflyttningar och bejakar svenska ekonomiska intressen.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“A clear Arctic policy shall be developed that prevents Russian and Chinese expansion and supports Swedish economic interests.”

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.