On 6 December, Sweden announced a defence cooperation agreement with the United States that allows U.S. forces to use Swedish facilities. Sweden faces security, societal, and resource dilemmas in the Arctic. Since last year, Sweden has gained invitee status into NATO and seeks to improve its military readiness, indigenous rights, and green energy infrastructure in the Arctic. Tension with Russia will challenge all three lines of effort in the coming year. (source)
Key Judgement 1. Sweden is highly likely to substantially boost military spending in the Arctic over the next twelve months.
Key Judgement 2. Sweden will likely collaborate with the Saami Council to improve indigenous rights in the coming twelve months.
Key Judgement 3. Sweden is highly likely to invest in the construction of fossil-free energy infrastructure in its Arctic region over the next twelve months, specifically in the form of wind turbines and the mining of natural resources needed for green energy solutions.
