Sweden's Defense Minister Pål Jonson announced at a press conference on Thursday morning that his government has decided that the Defense Materiel Agency (FMV) should investigate the possibility of sending specialist support to Ukraine in the fall of 2024. This means that the FMV could station a number of military staff on the ground in Ukraine to provide practical support to Kyiv’s procurement of defense equipment.
In considering FMV's expanded role, Stockholm is signaling the government's effort to enhance its support for Ukraine. The Swedish personnel, who are expected to be based in their embassy in Kyiv, will focus on securing maintenance, spare parts and logistics assistance for the military equipment that Sweden has already provided.
“We have provided extensive military support to Ukraine and FMV will have an important role when it comes to securing supply solutions,” Jonson said.
Sweden's military support has so far consisted of 16 support packages worth around SEK 52 billion ($4.5 billion). Key equipment donations have included the Stridsfordon 90 (Combat Vehicle 90), the Stridsvagn 122 (Leopard 2 tank), Archer artillery systems, and various types of anti-tank missiles and advanced munitions. The proposed new FMV mission will include a review, performance analysis and lessons learnt from the use of the Swedish in combat operations.
In addition to the possibility of providing this direct assistance, Jonson highlighted that the bulk of Sweden’s equipment donations came from its surplus stocks, and they now have limited spare equipment. He suggested that they would in future concentrate on producing new equipment specifically for Ukraine. He said that this would undoubtedly introduce a new dimension in the quality of the support Stockholm can offer.
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“FMV will therefore play a decisive role in building up Ukrainian procurement capacity,” he said.
Sweden agreed to provide 1,000 CV90 combat vehicles for Ukraine, which will be manufactured in and jointly funded by Sweden and the Netherlands for delivery to Ukraine, with the first vehicles expected to be received in 2026. The Netherlands contribution is said to be €400 million ($440 million).
He added that not only will his government deliver new equipment in the future, but also to deploy to help maintain and secure these supplies.
Jonson also mentioned that the US and Sweden had signed a Defense Cooperation Agreement (DCA) on Thursday. This will enable a legal basis for increased cooperation between the two nations particularly by regularizing how US forces operate in Sweden. It not only clarifies the in-country legal status of US military personnel, but also enables access to deployment areas, pre-positioning of military materiel and covers tax and customs regulations. In particular, the DCA gives the US military access to use 17 Swedish defense force bases and training areas.
“It may be at some of the 17 designated military locations that you can see an increased military presence, but this will of course take place in close dialogue between the American and Swedish armed forces,” Jonson says.
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