The Navy of the Kingdom of Sweden: what is its condition?

For Sweden, with coastline of more than 3,000 kilometers and almost 90% of goods imported by sea, having a navy at an appropriate level is a must. Therefore, one of the main tasks of the navy is the protection of maritime trade in order to ensure the continuity of supplies of goods to the population and raw materials to the economy. Energy security and the supply of fossil fuels via communication lines in the Baltic Sea are also becoming an important national security concern.

Defense Doctrine

Since 2014, when Russia illegally annexed Crimea and started a proxy war in Eastern Ukraine, the perception of Russia in Sweden changed drastically from a difficult partner to a main security challenge. Russia on the regular basis provokes events with violation of the airspace and territorial waters of Sweden. In 2013 Russian aircraft practiced nuclear bomb attacks close to the Swedish border. It turned out that Sweden had no fighter jets ready to intercept the Russian aircraft caused by the low level of readiness in Swedish armed forces.

It was awakening moment for Sweden and  forced the need of changes and quick adjustment of security situation. The adaptation  and implementation of the new security policy that started after 2014 is known as the “Hultqvist doctrine” named after Defence Minister Peter Hultqvist at that time.

The new approach to security was based on realistic paradigm and small state strategy. The doctrine had 3 main components:

1) building up deterrence and defence capabilities

2) more bilateral cooperation and enhanced partnership with NATO

3) promotion of a rule-based security order and opposition to countries (Russia) that has broken it.

This laid ground for the closer cooperation with NATO and other regional formats. Sweden participated in NATO’s Baltops naval exercise and  EU’s anti-piracy operations in the Indian Ocean. Sweden is member of JEF (Joint Expeditionary Force) led by UK and consisting of Sweden, Denmark, Finland, Estonia, Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands and Norway. Since 2009 Sweden is also part of Nordic Defence Cooperation (NORDEFCO), which provides framework for cooperation on defence materiel between Nordic countries.

The worsening security situation in the Baltic Sea region and in Eastern Europe sped up Swedish military preparations. The new security strategy adopted by Riksdag (parliament) in 2020 focused mainly on the Russian threat in the Baltic Sea region. Sweden decided to strengthen its military potential and prepare for the total defense. The long Swedish tradition of non-alignment and neutrality was put into question after the new Russian aggression against Ukraine in 2022.  The result is that Sweden, along with Finland, is now officially applying to join NATO. The accession of Finland and Sweden to NATO will definitely increase the Alliance’s ability to conduct collective defense missions in the Baltic Sea and deter any other potential Russian aggression. Sweden is well prepared to join NATO and would not have much problems with the interoperability with other countries because of the long term cooperation in the previous years.

Organization of the Fleet

The Navy is one of the four armed forces of Sweden in addition to the Army, Air Force and National Guard. The Swedish Navy is one of the three largest in the Baltic Sea basin and its main operational base is in Karlskrona. The staff numbers 2,000 seamen and 500 coastal defense forces. The Swedish naval force is headed by the head of the navy with the rank of rear admiral. The fleet is organized into 3 Flotillas and a Marine Regiment:

• 1 submarine Flotilla (1st ubflj) stationed in Karlskrona (3rd OP Gotland, 2nd OP Södermanland, HMS Belos)
• 3 Flotilla of surface ships (3. sjöstridsflj) stationed in Karlskrona (2 Stockholm corvettes, 2 Visby corvettes, 3 Tapper patrol ships, 2 Koster, HMS Trossö)
• 4 Flotilla of surface ships (4th sjöstridsflj) of bases in Musko and Berga
• 1 Marine Regiment (Amf 1) with the main base in Berga

Maritime Strategy & Fleet Tactics

In recent years Baltic Sea became another frontline of competition between Russia and the West. Intensive Russian submarine activity in Stockholm’s archipelago and frequent violations of Nordic and Baltic air space by Russian aircrafts became a “new normal” for Sweden.  With the recent sabotage of Nord Stream pipelines Baltic Sea region can be characterized by tensions and uncertainty.

Before the year 2022 Sweden´s main concern with Russia was not that of an immediate invasion, but rather of a border crisis or local conflict in the region that would affect Sweden freedom of movement and trade at sea. At present the threat of fighting the Russian armed forces is more possible then ever. That is way Sweden has to quickly adopt to the whole new security situation.

Taking into account the characteristics of the Northern Baltic Sea and the Swedish coastline the navy has been carefully prepared to operate in a specific waters and conditions. The fleet has a full self-sufficiency and its main enemy is known. Although Sweden is actively participating in international operations the main Swedes focus is primarily on self-defense of their own coast, as part of the so-called total defense and protection of maritime communication lines.

The surface combatants and submarines the fleet is composed of are relatively small in terms of their size, draft and displacement. The lack of light cruisers, destroyers and frigates is justified by the implementation of specific defense tasks and adopted tactics. In the Baltic Sea conditions and with close proximity to Russia smaller ships work better than big units that are easier to track and sink. The selection and construction of ships is tailored to the defense needs of its own coast, which in the case of Sweden is characterized by a large number of bays and islets. The Swedes use the shape of the coastlines to strengthen their camouflage and enhance the chosen combat tactics of the fleet. They are difficult to track, but they can deliver an unexpected blow on their own.

Swedes are also practicing fast sea deployments on many of the islands that are part of  theirs territory. The Swedish island of Gotland is of a crucial importance since it can increase the capability of Sweden (and NATO in the future) to deny Russia the possibility to use airspace over the Baltic Sea by deploying air defense systems on the island. For this operations they use Stridsbåt 90 fast landing boats. The Swedes have around 150 such a vessels. They can sail with a maximum speed of 40 knots and a draft of 0.8 m and can easily and quickly move several hundred soldiers to any place in the Baltic Sea basin.

The largest combat units in the Swedish fleet are the Visby class corvettes with a displacement of 640 tons and a length of 72 m, five of which were put into service in 2002-2015. They are designed in stealth technology and are very difficult to detect and track by observation systems. Hiding in the shadow of the coastline they are also very hard to hit by anti-ship missiles. On the other hand Visby Corvettes can easily make a surprise attack on the enemy trying to reach the Swedish coast. These corvettes turned out to be so useful that the design of the new vessels, which is to replace them in the future, has already been called Visby of the second generation.

Similar tasks can be performed by two Göteborg class missile boats. Thanks to their small size (displacement 425 tons, length 57, 2 m draft) they can easily hide behind many islands and in very shallow waters, and from there, under the shore cover, attack any enemy with the RBS 15 – a long-range fire-and-forget surface-to-surface and air-to-surface anti-ship missile. Göteborg class missile boat can be also very effective in anti-submarine warfare.

Two of the Stockholm class corvettes were built in 1980s and are ageing quickly. In 2017 they were rebuilt and are now serving as coastal patrol boats.  But they are still armed with four RBS 15 anti-ship missiles, 57 mm cannon and several machine guns.

Submarines play a very important role in the Swedish defense system. According to the recommendations of the “White Paper on Swedish Security Policy and Military Defense Development 2021-2025”, the number of this class of vessels in Sweden should increase from the current four to five during this period, through the modernization and activation of the third Gotland-class submarine and the introduction of two new submarines type A26.

An important element of the coastal defense forces are coastal missile launchers, which can attack surface targets even at a distance of more than 200 km with RBS15 missiles. These missiles can also be carried by Swedish combat planes, significantly increasing the area they protect without having to send their own missile ships deep into the sea and speeding up the moment of hitting the target.

Besides the main surface combat ships and submarines Swedish Navy is using a significant group of auxiliary vessels that include: nine anti-mine warfare ships, thirteen patrol ships, one reconnaissance ship, one logistic support ship and two rescue ships – including the Belos class specializing in rescuing sunken submarines.

Sweden is planning to modernize the five Visby class corvettes by 2025, including additional new anti-aircraft defense systems. A landing battalion will be organized to defend the west coast of Sweden. For years 2021-2025 Swedish Navy is planning the purchase of new surface ships to replace the Gävle class corvettes, with two new ships scheduled for delivery between 2026 and 2030. The new submarines A26 Blekinge class are scheduled to enter the Swedish Navy in the years 2023-25.

Summary

For Sweden and Finland the security environment has change a great deal in the recent year. Now there is a common threat perception and when Sweden and Finland finally join NATO all of the Nordic countries (Denmark, Norway, Iceland) will be in one big alliance This will replace the institutional variance, half-measures and ad hoc solutions that characterized the Nordic countries cooperation in the previous years.

After joining NATO Sweden will probably have to make new adjustments to its plans, especially in the fleet, which takes a longer time to modernize than the land forces or air forces. Nevertheless Sweden will benefit largely form joining the alliance when it comes to national security. For NATO countries, those on the eastern flank like Poland and Baltic States it is also a win-win situation because Sweden is a serious player with significant potential in the Baltic Sea region.