When a few weeks ago there was serious talk of Sweden and Finland joining NATO, Turkey opposed it on the grounds that both countries had given asylum to Kurdish separatists, traditional opponents of Ankara, and for having canceled an export license for weapons to the Eurasian country.
The two countries immediately sent delegations to Turkey to explain their position and try to placate the criticism, and the atmosphere calmed down.
This Monday the secretary of the military organization, Jens Stoltenberg, announced that at least Sweden has taken some measures that would lead Turkey to withdraw its veto.
Entry into NATO must be approved by all its members.
“I am pleased that Sweden has already started to change its anti-terrorism legislation and that it will ensure that the legal framework for arms exports reflects future status as a member of NATO with new commitments to allies,” Stoltenberg added during a press conference. with Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson.
“These are two important steps to address the concerns that Turkey has raised,” he stressed.
Andersson further confirmed that Sweden had changed its anti-terrorism laws and was in the process of further tightening them.
“From the first of July we will also have even stricter legislation when it comes to the fight against terrorism. So here there is no doubt about how strongly Sweden views terrorism and that we are ready to contribute to the fight against terrorism,” the prime minister stressed. One of the measures is to cancel the granting of visas to members of the PKK, the Kurdish separatist organization.
Stoltenberg also said that the goal was for Sweden and Finland to join NATO “as soon as possible” and that it was inconceivable that NATO allies would not come to Sweden’s defense if it were attacked.
On the other hand, the risk of a foreign invasion of the island of Gotland seemed so remote that at the beginning of the century that Swedish island in the Baltic Sea was demilitarized.
Today, however, the Swedish armed forces are back, conducting exercises alongside US forces, designed not only to protect its 58,000 inhabitants but also to retake it in the event of a foreign invasion. From Russia, for example.
US soldiers have been practicing airdrops and amphibious maneuvers as part of NATO exercises in the Baltic Sea. This year they acquire a special meaning due to the growing tensions derived from the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Some 7,000 troops and 45 vessels from 14 NATO countries participated in the exercises, along with forces from Sweden and Finland.
Despite being non-aligned nations, but not members of the Non-Aligned Movement, both Nordic countries have participated in NATO maneuvers in the past and their governments decided to request their admission to that military alliance after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
“I feel that we are well prepared. We made a big display of forces on Gotland. We will defend it,” Colonel Magnus Frykvall, the island’s military commander, told the AP agency. “It is difficult to take a well-defended island.”
Strategically located in the center of the southern Baltic, Gotland has suffered from foreign invasions in the past. The last, in 1808, was briefly taken by Russian forces.
After the Cold War, Sweden felt the danger of Russian aggression was so slight that it focused on peacekeeping operations abroad rather than defending its territory. The regiment on Gotland was withdrawn in 2005.
The annexation of the Crimean peninsula by Russia in 2014, however, forced a rethink and in 2018 a new regiment was sent. There are now about 400 soldiers assigned to the island and more are planned to be sent as a result of the invasion of Ukraine.
Many islanders, however, believe that Sweden alone could not repel an invasion.
“If we were invaded, we would have no hope because our defenses are very limited. We have very good and modern forces, but they are very few,” said Lars Söderdahl, a 33-year-old cook in the island’s main town, Visby.
Gotland is 100 kilometers (60 miles) from the Swedish mainland and 160 kilometers (100 miles) from the Latvian coast.
