Sweden's defense ministry warning to brace for 'war' sends public into panic
Swedish defense ministers, army commander-in-chief warn of possible armed conflict
Swedish defense officials’
warning to brace for war as the nation nears NATO membership has
prompted some panic and caused supplies to fly off shelves, according to
reports.
"For a nation for whom peace has been a
pleasant companion for almost 210 years, the idea that it is an
immoveable constant is conveniently close at hand," Swedish Civil
Defense Minister Carl-Oskar Bohlin said at Folk och Försvars, or
"Society and Defense," annual national conference in Sälen on Sunday.
"But
taking comfort in this conclusion has become more dangerous than it has
been for a very long time," he said, according to a government
transcript. "Many have said it before me, but let me do so in an
official capacity, more plainly and with naked clarity: There could be
war in Sweden."
The commander in chief of the Swedish armed forces,
General Micael Byden, who visited the eastern front of Ukraine in
December, also spoke to the conference on Sunday, warning all Swedes to
prepare mentally for the possibility of war as their nation is just two
steps short of NATO membership.
