Th e Swedish government has decided to reintroduce military conscription – a move backed by the country’s MPs. Th e decision means that 4,000 men and women will be called up for service from 1 January 2018, a defence ministry spokeswoman told the BBC. Th ey will be selected from about 13,000 young people born in 1999, who will be asked to undergo a military assessment, Marinette Nyh Radebo said. Non-aligned Sweden is worried about Russia’s Baltic military drills. In September, a Swedish garrison was restored to Gotland, a big island lying between the Swedish mainland and the three ex-Soviet Baltic states.
Why is this happening? Ms Nyh Radebo said the return to conscription was prompted by “the security change in our neighbourhood”. “Th e Russian illegal annexation of Crimea [in 2014], the confl ict in Ukraine and the increased military activity in our neighbourhood are some of the reasons,” she said. How will it work? Th e 13,000 who undergo the military tests will be a mixture of volunteers and conscripts.
“You are part of the conscript system once you’ve done the tests – men and women are treated equally,” Ms Nyh Radebo said. “Th e authorities choose the ones who are willing, interesting and motivated.” Th e conscripts will serve for nine to 12 months. Th e aim is to encourage them either to become military professionals or, later, to join the reserves. “If we want full and trained military units, the voluntary system needs to be complemented by compulsory military service,” Defence Minister Peter Hultqvist told Swedish public broadcaster SVT. Sweden had military conscription until 2010, but previously only men were drafted. How does this impact regional security? Ms Nyh Radebo said that “70% of parliament is behind the decision to strengthen the military and cooperation with the countries around us”.
Th e closest co-operation is with Finland, she added. Sweden and Finland are not in Nato, but co-operate closely with the alliance. Th eir Nordic neighbours Norway and Denmark are in Nato. Th e Swedish recruitment system will be modelled on Norway’s, Ms Nyh Radebo said
