Sweden unveils historic defence bill

HELSINKI, Oct. 15 (Xinhua) — The Swedish government has announced a new Total Defence Bill for the 2025-2030 period, aimed at significantly strengthening both military and civil defence capabilities.
The bill allocates a record SEK 170 billion (17 billion U.S.dollars) for military defence and SEK 35.7 billion for civil defence, marking one of the largest defence spending increases in the nation’s history.
As a result, Sweden’s defence expenditure is projected to reach 2.6 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) by 2028.
“This is a powerful Defence Resolution that will give total defence more strength and better balance,” said Defence Minister Pal Jonson.
Key plans include establishing four new military brigades by 2030 and increasing the number of conscripts to 10,000 by 2030, with a further rise to 12,000 by 2035. (1 SEK = 0.1 U.S. dollar) ■