Defense Minister Pal Jonson said that Sweden wants to establish a presence in Ukraine by stationing a Defense Materiel Administration (FMV) to assist that country in purchasing weapons.
As reported by Anadolu Agency, the Swedish Defense Minister announced this at a news conference in Stockholm on Thursday 15 August.
“We are taking measures so that Ukraine can gain access to newly produced defense equipment,” he said.
Jonson pointed out that Sweden and other Western countries are running out of weapons to donate to Ukraine. Therefore, the initiative aims to provide future support for Ukraine in the form of financial donations to purchase weapons.
“It is to intensify support for Ukraine in a situation where we will go from donating material from the Armed Forces’ warehouses to production of newly produced defense material,” he said, adding that the initiative must take place without “weakening our own operational capability.”
Jonson denied that the measures could mean an increased security risk for Sweden.
“I know that Russia sometimes tries to intimidate and threaten other countries. But the measures we take are fully in line with international law. It is Russia that has started this illegal war,” the Swedish Defense Minister added.
Sweden has sent 16 support packages to Ukraine at a total of 43.5 billion of Swedish kroner ($4.2 billion). The donated equipment includes Stridsfordon 90 (Combat Vehicle 90, or CV90), Stridsvagn 122 (Leopard 2 tank), Archer artillery systems, and various types of anti-tank missiles and advanced ammunition.
Sweden considers sending military officials to Ukraine
Earlier this week, Sweden announced that starting in fall 2024, the Scandinavian country may deploy personnel to Ukraine to support defense procurement, maintain donated equipment, and gather insights into its battlefield performance.
The Swedish officials, expected to work from the Swedish embassy in Kyiv, will focus on ensuring maintenance, spare parts, and logistics for the military aid Sweden has already provided.
Sweden will also be interested in analyzing and learning from how Swedish equipment has performed in combat.
“We naturally want to bring home lessons from this,” Jonson emphasized.
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