Sweden Does Not Exclude Possibility of Russian Military Attack

The Defence Committee of the Swedish Parliament has admitted that Russia may launch a military attack on the country.

According to Swedish TV channel SVT, the parliamentary report, due to be published on Monday, states that although Russian ground forces are in Ukraine, an attack on Sweden cannot be ruled out.

"Russia has also further lowered the threshold for using military force and shows a high propensity for political and military risks. Russia's ability to conduct operations using air forces, naval forces, long-range weapons or nuclear weapons against Sweden remains unchanged," the document says.

According to the TV channel, the report outlines Sweden's new defence doctrine, which is based on membership in NATO, unlike the previous doctrine, which was based on cooperation with other Nordic countries and the EU.

Sweden is trying to strengthen its defences and  in 2022 applied to join NATO after Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine.

So far, only Turkey and Hungary have not ratified Sweden's application to join the alliance.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg previously reiterated that Sweden had met all the requirements to join NATO and expressed hope that this will happen before the summit in Vilnius in July.

Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, President of Türkiye, said he would not support Sweden joining NATO at the July summit in Vilnius.