Swedish Armed Forces

The Swedish Armed Forces (Swedish: Försvarsmakten, lit. 'the Defence Force') are the armed forces of the Kingdom of Sweden, tasked with the defence of the country as well as with promoting Sweden's wider interests, supporting international peacekeeping, and providing humanitarian aid. It consists of four service branches: the Swedish Army, the Swedish Air Force and the Swedish Navy, as well as a military reserve force, the Home Guard. Since 1994, all Swedish military branches are organised within a single unified government agency, the Swedish Armed Forces Headquarters, which is headed by the Supreme Commander, even though the individual services maintain their distinct identities.

The Swedish Armed Forces have a long history, dating back to the sixteenth century, and have played an influential role in the history of Sweden. They reached their height in the seventeenth century, during the time of the Swedish Empire, when they participated in a variety of wars; these include the Scanian War, Second Northern War, and Great Northern War, among others. Since the nineteenth century, they have also played an important role in the maintenance of Swedish neutrality, especially during the Cold War. However, they have often collaborated with NATO, and were formally invited to join the alliance in 2022.

The Swedish Armed Forces is made up of 24,400 active personnel, 11,400 military reserves, 21,500 Home Guard and 5,200 additional conscripts yearly into the Reserves (set to increase to 8,000 conscripts yearly by 2024) as of 2022.

Units of the Swedish Armed Forces are currently on deployment in several international operations either actively or as military observers, including Afghanistan as part of the Resolute Support Mission and in Kosovo (as part of Kosovo Force). Moreover, Swedish Armed Forces contribute as the leading state for a European Union Battlegroup approximately once every three years through the Nordic Battlegroup. Sweden has close relations with NATO and NATO members, and participates in training exercises like the Admiral Pitka Recon Challenge, and Exercise Trident Juncture 2018. Sweden also has a strong cooperation with its closest allies of the Nordic countries being part of the Nordic Defence Cooperation and joint exercises such as Exercise Northern Wind.

Sweden has not participated in an officially declared war since the 1814 Swedish–Norwegian War, although its forces, under the UN flag, have been involved in conflicts like the Congo Crisis and the military intervention in Libya. The Swedish government has managed to keep Sweden out of war through a policy of neutrality.