Total Defence's direction and capacity

The counter-proposal wants the military defence to be dimensioned for deterrence and defence in a collective NATO context and that support for being a host country be strengthened. The election manifesto instead requires that the host country agreement with NATO be torn up and that Swedish non-alignment be restored, and the party programme aims to leave NATO. The plan therefore does not support a NATO-adapted sizing of defence.

• tear up host country agreementdecisive»Vänsterpartiet vill att Sverige river upp värdlandsavtalet med NATO.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The Left Party wants Sweden to tear up the host country agreement with NATO.”
• aim to leave NATO»med sikte på att lämna Nato.« (party programme ↗)“with the aim of leaving NATO.”
• non-alignment»vi är det enda riksdagspartiet som konsekvent värnar och vill återupprätta svensk alliansfrihet« (2022 manifesto ↗)“we are the only Riksdag party that consistently values and wants to restore Swedish non-alignment.”
• opposition to militarization»Vi vänder oss emot militarisering och kapprustning.« (party programme ↗)“We oppose militarization and arms race.”

The election manifesto binds the party to NATO membership, to two percent of GDP in allocations and to the increase being implemented in strengthened military presence throughout the country. The counter-proposal's demand that defence be sized also for deterrence and defence in a collective NATO context, with capacity to defend the entire country, is precisely that direction. The plan also emphasizes continued international cooperation.

• military presence throughout the countrydecisive»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 implemented in among other things more conscripts, modern equipment and strengthened military presence throughout the country.”
• NATO membership»Sverige ska gå med i Nato.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden shall join NATO.”
• increased defence allocations»Anslagen till det militära försvaret ska öka till motsvarande två procent av BNP.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Allocations to military defence shall increase to corresponding two percent of GDP.”
• international defence 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 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 counter-proposal wants to size the military for deterrence and defence in a collective NATO context and strengthen military regions' host nation support. The plan holds fast to military non-alignment and wants the leasing of Swedish territory to NATO to cease, which is the opposite of an expanded host nation role. Setting human security before territorial security also speaks against such an armament direction.

• non-alignmentdecisive»Miljöpartiet de gröna värnar om den militära alliansfriheten och är därför mot anslutning till NATO.« (party programme ↗)“The Green Party values military non-alignment and is therefore against NATO membership.”
• no host nation support for NATO»Uthyrningen av svensk mark till NATO och andra utländska militärstyrkor för krigsövningar ska också upphöra.« (party programme ↗)“The leasing of Swedish territory to NATO and other foreign military forces for military exercises shall also cease.”
• independent security policy»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 non-alignment so that we can continue work toward nuclear disarmament, for disarmament and pursue an independent foreign policy where we stand up for human rights.”
• human security first»Vi vill se en politik som sätter mänsklig säkerhet före territoriell.« (party programme ↗)“We want to see a policy that puts human security before territorial.”

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 commits to rapidly and strongly strengthen the military defense within NATO membership and that security shall apply from the country's borders to your neighborhood, while the party programme requires the ability to defend one's entire territory. The counter-proposal's requirements for sizing for collective deterrence and for tangible capability in strategically important parts of the country follow from this. However, the plan does not name any geographic areas.

• rearmament within NATOdecisive»Sverige ska försvaras. Vi vill rusta det militära försvaret snabbt, kraftfullt och långsiktigt. Sverige behöver satsa två procent av BNP på försvaret så snart det är praktiskt möjligt och gå med i Nato.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden shall be defended. We want to strengthen military defense quickly, powerfully and sustainably. Sweden needs to invest two percent of GDP in defense as soon as practical and join NATO.”
• security throughout the country»Vi ska stärka samhällskontraktet för ett tryggare och starkare Sverige, från landets gränser till ditt kvarter.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“We shall strengthen the social contract for a safer and stronger Sweden, from the country's borders to your neighborhood.”
• defense of entire territory»Sverige måste därför kunna försvara sitt eget territorium.« (party programme ↗)“Sweden must therefore be able to defend its own territory.”
• NATO and increased defense capability»Kommande mandatperiod kommer på många sätt att präglas av att föra Sverige in i Nato och höja vår försvarsförmåga, säkra vår energiförsörjning, men också hanteringen av en hög inflation och stigande kostnader för hushållen.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The coming term will in many ways be characterized by bringing Sweden into NATO and increasing our defense capability, securing our energy supply, but also managing high inflation and rising costs for households.”

The election manifesto establishes that Sweden within NATO particularly should contribute with the infrastructure needed for strategic depth in the defense of Finland and the Baltic, which in substance is to dimension the defense in a collective NATO context and to strengthen host nation support. The plan also demands a significantly stronger military defense and that Sweden together with allies defends both Sweden and our part of the world. The party programme's wording that territorial defense should be decisive for the design qualifies but does not nullify the conclusion.

• host nation support and strategic depthdecisive»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 a necessary and strategic depth for the defense of Finland and the Baltic.”
• collective defense within NATO»Därför ska Sverige gå med i Nato och tillsammans med USA, Kanada och våra europeiska grannar försvara både Sverige och vår del av världen.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Therefore Sweden shall join NATO and together with the USA, Canada and our European neighbors defend both Sweden and our part of the world.”
• significantly strengthened defense»Sverige behöver ett betydligt starkare militärt försvar än i dag.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden needs a significantly stronger military defense than today.”
• territorial defense is determinative»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 the defense is designed.”

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 requires a defence force whose strength, composition, readiness and deployment make it able to act as a war deterrent during security policy crises in the near area, and that territorial integrity and border protection be valued. Sweden shall be engaged in resolving security problems in Europe and the near area, and close NATO cooperation is a natural part of security policy. The counter-proposal's requirement for dimensioning for collective deterrence and deployable forces throughout the country follows from this.

• war deterrent capability in the near areadecisive»kan verka krigsavhållande vid säkerhetspolitiska kriser« (party programme ↗)“can act as a war deterrent during security policy crises”
• value territorial integrity»värna territoriell integritet och utöva gränsskydd samt« (party programme ↗)“value territorial integrity and exercise border protection and”
• shared responsibility for near-area security»att lösa säkerhetsproblem i Europa och närområdet, och efter förmåga även i övriga delar av världen.« (party programme ↗)“to resolve security problems in Europe and the near area, and to the extent of our ability also in other parts of the world.”
• close NATO cooperation»med NATO bör, givet nämnda kriterier, vara en naturlig del av svensk säkerhetspolitik.« (party programme ↗)“with NATO should, given the aforementioned criteria, be a natural part of Swedish security policy.”

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 wants Sweden as a NATO member to be a security producer in the region and contribute concretely to the defence of allies, while also strengthening defence to uphold territorial integrity throughout the country. The counter-proposal's requirement that military defence is sized for deterrence and defence in a collective NATO context, with tangible forces and strengthened host nation support, is a clarification of precisely that ambition. The plan does not specify geographic focal points, which is why the conclusion is derived.

• security producer in the regiondecisive»Sverige ska som medlem i Nato vara en säkerhetsproducent i vårt närområde och även få ut mesta möjliga effekt av medlemskapet.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden should as a NATO member be a security producer in our region and also get maximum effect from membership.”
• whole country must be defended»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 we can better defend our country, uphold our territorial integrity and protect Swedish interests.”
• collective defence in practice»Sverige bör bidra konkret till skyddet av våra vänner i de baltiska länderna, exempelvis genom att överväga att skicka bidrag till Natos stridsgrupper eller att delta med vårt stridsflyg i Natos incidentberedskap.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden should contribute concretely to the protection of our friends in the Baltic countries, for example by considering sending contributions to NATO battle groups or participating with our fighter jets in NATO's incident readiness.”
• strengthened operational capability(2022 manifesto)

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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 central defense commitment is to re-establish total defense so that Sweden has the capacity to meet potential attackers and a war-deterrent capacity in a rapidly deteriorating regional environment. The demands for increased readiness, immediately deployable combat units and the ability to defend the entire country are precisely the capability development the plan demands. The plan also wants to deepen regional defense and security cooperation, which includes host nation support.

• capacity to meet attackersdecisive»Sverigedemokraterna vill återupprätta totalförsvaret och att Sverige ska ha förmåga att möta potentiella angripare.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Sweden Democrats want to re-establish total defense and that Sweden shall have the capacity to meet potential attackers.”
• war-deterrent capability»Målet är en krigsavhållande försvarsförmåga med kapacitet att möta främmande aggressioner, men som också kan bistå samhället i kris eller oro.« (2022 manifesto ↗)“The goal is a war-deterrent defense capability with capacity to meet foreign aggression, but also to assist society in crisis or unrest.”
• armament in the region»Rusta Sverige inför en ny säkerhetspolitisk situation i vårt närområde« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Arm Sweden for a new security policy situation in our region”
• deepened regional cooperation»Fördjupa det nordiska försvars- och säkerhetssamarbetet« (2022 manifesto ↗)“Deepen Nordic defense and security cooperation”

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.