The Swedish Armed Forces are ready with a new expanded budget proposal.
The Defense Committee, where the parties are involved, reached an agreement in April on new defense initiatives that they want to see. The Swedish Armed Forces have now, on the government's commission, assessed which ones can be implemented within a defense budget that grows from 135 billion 2025 to 185 billion 2030 and to 226 billion 2035.
The Swedish Armed Forces assess, among other things, that three mechanized brigades and one infantry brigade will be operational by 2030, that a large number of units can be reinforced with air defense against drones and helicopters, that 10,000 conscripts per year can be trained from 2030, and that the navy can have more sailors.
From 2026 to 2030, territorial units in the form of up to ten reconnaissance, communication, traffic, and logistics companies can be organized.
However, the Swedish Armed Forces consider that the establishment of two additional infantry battalions and an independent Norrland Infantry Regiment should not be implemented.
The Swedish Armed Forces are also uncertain about whether it will be possible to train 12,000 conscripts per year from 2032. As for expanded storage of supplies, the Swedish Armed Forces will prioritize ammunition, qualified ammunition, and spare parts.
Together with what the Swedish Armed Forces themselves proposed in their budget proposal in the winter, the initiatives represent a very high ambition level, according to Granholm.
However, he emphasizes that there are uncertainties in the planning that will become larger over time. This concerns, for example, access to new defense equipment on the market and how long it takes to build new infrastructure.
The Defense Committee's and the Swedish Armed Forces' proposal is an important basis for the government's defense proposal that will be presented in the fall. Then, the Riksdag will decide how the defense should be strengthened in the coming years.
