There is no doubt that the Baltic Sea is our home waters (...), but this also increases our ability to be present in other places that may be interesting for Sweden, Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson (M) told TT aboard a French frigate of the ordered model, which is visiting central Stockholm.
At a ceremony on board, Kristersson and Macron spoke about the ability to establish maritime control - for example, to keep shipping lanes open to commercial traffic.
Much bigger
Two agreements were signed at the meeting. One represents a deepening of the countries' defence cooperation, but no new information was given about how Sweden will in future relate to - or be included in - France's nuclear deterrence capability. The countries have been discussing this since last spring.
The second agreement - the purchase of four frigates - is worth 44 billion kronor.
The first ship will be completed in 2030 and the so-called Luleå class will be the largest combat ships in the Swedish navy - much larger than the Visby corvettes.
Some experts have questioned whether the frigates are best suited for Swedish defence and have pointed to them as clear targets. In the war in Ukraine, the Ukrainian military has managed to attack Russian ships worth many billions with smaller and much cheaper sea drones that attack in swarms on the sea surface.
“Need both”
How have you considered the development of drone warfare before making the decision to purchase these frigates?
That you need both. You need small, fast-moving and unmanned vehicles both underwater and in the air. And you need large platforms that can carry very, very heavy weapons and that can defend themselves against very, very heavy weapons, Kristersson answers.
The Luleå-class ships will be equipped with long-range air defence systems. To defend against closer threats, they will receive, among other things, the Saab Trackfire system.
Kristersson believes he has received sufficient information that the ships will be able to handle, for example, swarms of underwater drones.
Yes, these are adapted to be able to defend themselves against a lot of different things. Then there are constant updates. We are learning at a speed that we have not done before, not least from Ukraine.
