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Several debaters call on Sweden and Europe to increase support for Ukraine. Pictured (left): Sweden's Minister of Defense Pål Jonson (M) and NATO's Deputy Secretary General Mircea Geoană. Photo: NATO. Source: Flickr. Photo (right): Ministry of Defense of Ukraine. Source: Flickr.

Current debate

Debaters want to see increased support for Ukraine for Sweden's security

Sweden must increase the support to Ukraine for to protect Europe and Sweden security. That mean several of that walked of the week debaters.  

- Our first line of defense must be greatly increased support for Ukraine. 

That's what Stefan Hedlund, senior professor of Eastern Studies at Uppsala University, writes in a debate article in Expressen. In order to strengthen Sweden's future security, Sweden must greatly expand its support to Ukraine in the form of, for example, artillery and combat aircraft, Stefan Hedlund believes. This is because, due to the changed world situation, it is uncertain to what extent Sweden's NATO membership will be able to protect Sweden in the event of an attack from Russia. 

- A victory for Donald Trump this autumn would in all probability mean that the US completely abandons Europe, and that NATO thereby loses most of its military muscle, writes Stefan Hedlund. 

NATO countries' pro-Russian stance is also an issue Swedish defense policy must deal with, according to Stefan Hedlund.  

- Prime Minister Viktor Orban has openly declared that Hungary will never go to war with Russia, and after the last elections, Slovakia also got both a president and a prime minister who are pro-Russian, he writes. 

"While all this European domestic politics is going on, the Ukrainians are fighting a daily battle for their survival"

Dagens Nyheter's editor-in-chief Peter Wolodarski agrees that Ukraine must receive more support to resist Putin's war of aggression. 

- Europe's airspace needs to be defended here and now, not in some hypothetical future, he writes.  

It is thanks to Ukraine standing up against Russia's invasion that the rest of Europe can live in peace without major sacrifices, he believes.  

- Seen as a united block, the EU and Great Britain have the resources to be able to help Ukraine, writes Peter Wolodarski.  

Ewa Stenberg, reporter at Dagens Nyheter, also comments on Sweden's defense budget. The government has proposed that the annual defense budget should be 52,8 billion higher in 2030. However, much of this is used to plug the holes in the previous defense decision, she believes.  

- Sthe death of Ukraine, the NATO alignment and price increases for defense equipment have meant that the previous defense decision was nevertheless heavily underfunded. Those holes are now being filled, she writes. 

Investments in security

The supplement is large – the question is, is it enough?

Ewa Stenberg, reporter, Dagens Nyheter  

What will we use the wealth for if we cannot defend Europe?

Peter Wolodarski, editor-in-chief, Dagens Nyheter 

When Sweden joins, NATO is at its worst 

Stefan Hedlund, senior professor in Eastern Studies at Uppsala University, Expressen debate

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