It’s been described as a bombshell moment. The upper echelons of Sweden’s government and defence forces last week shocked the nation by explicitly warning that war might come to Sweden, and that each and every Swede should prepare themselves. While some have taken the warning seriously and flocked to the stores to stock up on fuel and survival kits, others have accused the country’s leaders of fear-mongering
The two weeks preparedness have been around for a long time in Sweden. It is far from what this issue is about. One of the issues was the goverment’s focus on that you should be prepared to die in war. Sure, it is true that you as a Swedish citizen may have to put you life on the line in case of war. But them focusing on that you should be prepared to die just framed it as if war is coming definetly and soon. The second issue is that the current government is obsessed with fearmongering about immigrants. One of the big points they made was that people who have immigrated and earned their citizenship will not be as willing to protect the country in case of war. I read a title of an article today that said experts have critiqued this statement and said it may actually be the other way around.
Makes sense, they’re the ones who had to work for it.