Local media reported last autumn that Swedish police are no longer allowed to cross the border to Norway, after the threat level in the neighboring country was lowered and Norwegian police stopped carrying firearms.
The problem is also a reality for Swedish Customs' uniformed personnel, who have been allowed to carry firearms since earlier this year.
We started carrying arms in our uniformed operations on November 1st. And then we can't cross the border, neither in Norway, Denmark, and probably not in Finland either, says Stefan Granath, deputy department head at Customs.
Long detours
Sweden and Norway have a control zone for customs purposes that extends 15 kilometers into each country, but the Swedish armed customs officers can no longer enter it. Instead, they have to stand right at the border crossing.
The Swedish armament has also created another logistical challenge along the Norwegian border – leading to long detours.
If I'm standing at a border crossing and need to get to the next one, the closest route might be to drive into Norway and then back again. You can save hours by not having to drive into Sweden, says Stefan Granath.
The Swedish customs officers can no longer drive across the Öresund Bridge and take the train at Kastrup to control trains entering Sweden.
Denmark says "No, you can't come over with a firearm on Danish soil".
Complicates control
The customs personnel have to do their controls first on the Swedish side, which can be more difficult.
Many people get off at one point, which means you have very little time to do the control and choose who or who should be controlled.
When it comes to the border with Finland, where the only relevant border crossing is Haparanda, the Swedish customs officers there have not yet received their armament. But when they do, it will be the same setup as at the borders with Norway and Denmark.
So far, we've said we don't drive over armed on Finnish soil, says Granath.
Despite the mobility problems, the possibility for uniformed customs personnel to carry arms is something that Customs is pleased with.
It's been great for us, but we have to think a bit and change where we do our controls. We just have a slightly smaller area to move around in.
