“Maintained neutrality for a long time”: why does Stockholm intend to join the project of the pan-European army

Swedish Minister of Defense Peter Hultqvist announced his country's intention to join the European Intervention Initiative (EII) integration program.

“This will provide Sweden with greater security by joining the international network. If there is any crisis in which many countries will be involved at the same time, we must be able to interact in such a situation, ”said Hultqvist, quoted by RIA Novosti.

Moreover, the minister emphasized that participation in the program does not mean that Stockholm will be involved in any military operations.

“In terms of cooperation, there is nothing that would oblige us (to participate in military operations. - RT ). But we will get the opportunity to influence the discussion and express our position, ”Hultqvist explained.

• Swedish Minister of Defense Peter Hultqvist
• Reuters
• © TT News Agency / Erik Simander

The final decision on Sweden’s participation in the European Armed Forces program can be made in September.

Commenting on Stockholm’s decision to join the European military alliance, experts note that Sweden’s membership could enhance its potential.

“Sweden has long had a powerful defense industry. Their fighters, tanks are known, they have excellent military personnel, ”Vladimir Prokhvatilov, an expert at the Russian Academy of Military Sciences, explained in an interview with RT.

We will remind, earlier the head of the Swedish Ministry of Defense stated that he did not see the need to create a European army.

According to experts, the current geopolitical situation could prompt Stockholm to change its position.

“For a very long time they remained neutral, but in the light of the integration of France, Germany and northern Italy, this can change. The Germans, French and Italians are uniting their defense complexes, and Sweden does not want to stay away from this dominant European trend, ”said Prokhvatilov.

This point of view is shared by Konstantin Voronov, Head of Regional Problems and Conflicts Department of European Political Studies, IMEMO RAS.

“The Swedish nation seeks to be aloof from the conflicts and contradictions of the great powers. It is in their character. But much has changed in the post-bipolar period. If during the years of the Cold War she sought not to participate in blocs, now many trends push her toward strengthening integration and joining alliances, ”Voronov said in an interview with RT.

However, the analyst is confident that, despite the future participation in the European alliance, Sweden is unlikely to radically change its defense policy, since it has long been closely cooperating with the rest of Europe in the framework of the partnership program with NATO.

At the same time, the idea of ​​joining the North Atlantic bloc is still not attractive to Sweden, Vladimir Prokhvatilov notes.

“NATO is not relevant for the Swedes, but they are interested in an alliance with the emerging military-industrial Europe. They would like to join the development of new technologies, the creation of unified weapons systems. Stockholm does not want to stay on the sidelines of European history, ”he said.

Macron Army

The idea of ​​creating a united army in Europe has been discussed for the past 30 years, but it has not come to real steps on this line. The call to finally implement long-standing plans came only in November last year, when the French president said that the EU countries need to combine their efforts in the field of defense.

“We must defend ourselves! From China, Russia and even from the United States, ”said Emmanuel Macron.

His words resonated in Europe. So, the head of the Spanish government, Pedro Sanchez, said that the EU "needs to move decisively in the field of security and defense." They approved the proposal at the EU summit in December: in the final communiqué of the meeting, it is noted that the initiative contributes to “strengthening the strategic autonomy of the European Union,” but it is specified that this project will not be a replacement for NATO, but will only complement it.

In November, Federica Mogherini, then the head of European diplomacy, spoke about plans to create a headquarters in Brussels to manage military operations. In the same month, the defense ministers of the EU member states approved the creation of a common intelligence school.

At the same time, Austria refused to participate in the project of the pan-European army, explaining this with its neutral position. The initiative was skeptical in Poland, calling it a "dream." US President Donald Trump criticized Macron. NATO itself noted that they support any EU defense initiatives if they do not duplicate the functions of the bloc.

Currently, 11 countries have joined the EII program: France, Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Portugal, Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Belgium, Finland and Estonia.

A peculiar presentation of the Macron project was the July parade in honor of Bastille Day, which was also attended by military from other states.

“For the first time since the end of World War II, there is such an urgent need for a united Europe. Strengthening the defensive potential of Europe together with the North Atlantic Alliance is a priority for France. This is the main message of the parade, ”Macron said then.

• French President Emmanuel Macron at the Bastille Day parade
• Reuters
• © Charles Platiau

According to Konstantin Voronov, the idea of ​​the European army is due not so much to personal ambitions of the President of the Fifth Republic as objective foreign policy reasons: the EU intends to strengthen its position in relations with the United States.

“Europe does not want to depend on the military-political doctrine of Washington to use Brussels in its interests in all corners of the globe, regardless of whether the EU itself needs it or not,” Voronov said.

In turn, a leading researcher at the Center for Security Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences Konstantin Blokhin believes that the uncertainty that is now observed in world politics has prompted Europe to such an idea.

“The Europeans began to think about it, because Trump spurred them on this with his statements. Europe is used to living in relative stability, but it understands that the world is changing, turbulence is emerging. What 15 years ago looked like political science fiction has become a reality today. For example, brexit or war in the east of Ukraine. It is not known how Trump will behave if he wins the next election, it is also unclear who will succeed him. It’s not clear which forces will prevail in the USA: perhaps, as their role in the world weakens, neo-isolationist tendencies may increase there and America itself will begin to reduce its presence in the world, ”he explained in an interview with RT.

Disagreements with the United States as one of the possible reasons for the creation of the European army are also mentioned by Vladimir Prokhvatilov.

“Trump has a very controversial policy. He acts by assault and onslaught, which Europeans do not like, ”the expert said.

Konstantin Blokhin also drew attention to the fact that the discussion about the pan-European army flared up with renewed vigor during another recession in relations between Europe and the United States.

“All this is an indicator of the crisis of Euro-Atlanticism. Europeans do not like many of Washington’s actions, such as withdrawing from a nuclear deal with Iran, breaking the INF Treaty. This especially does not suit those European elites, primarily France and Germany, whom the Americans see not as equal partners, but as their satellites, ”Blokhin says.

"Goals are not outlined yet."

Interviewed by RT experts believe that, despite lobbying for this idea from Paris and Berlin, its prospects are still vague.

“The objectives of this European integration program in defense and security are not yet outlined,” Voronov emphasizes. “Some efforts are being made in this direction, but this initiative has not yet become a genuine and well-established security system for small countries, in particular for Sweden.”

The expert recalled that Europe has yet to determine how a united army will relate to NATO.

“The integration in which the EU participates is contrary to Atlantic integration within NATO. Most European countries still do not want to break the old worked-out system, because it remains to be seen what will be the new one, ”Voronov said.

Konstantin Blokhin notes that the creation of a European army can be fraught with difficulties that can make many countries abandon this idea. First of all, we are talking about additional defense spending.

“This will require not even tens, but hundreds of billions of dollars, which will greatly affect the standard of living that Europeans are accustomed to,” the expert noted.

The US position, which some EU states are oriented to, can have a significant impact on this issue.

“Most of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, such as Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania, Bulgaria, the Baltic states, are interested in linking to the United States. Do they want this Euro-Atlantic security system preserved? and so that the United States continues to act as a leader in the field of security, ”says Voronov.

As Vladimir Prokhvatilov recalls, the White House perceives the European defense project negatively.

“The United States wants its contingent to remain in the EU and Europe continues to buy their weapons,” he explained.

• US President Donald Trump
• Reuters
• © Leah Millis

In addition, Konstantin Blokhin notes that in Europe there is still no consensus on the creation of a common army, which is used in Washington.

“In this respect, Europe is split. There are countries that remember this, for example, France and Germany, and there are states that don’t talk about it at all and don’t want to increase their political sovereignty - Poland, Romania, Lithuania and Latvia, ”the expert noted.

Another reason Europe is not in a hurry to create its own army is the hope that US policy will return to its former course after Trump left, Blokhin says.

“Some European elites believe that Trump is a temporary phenomenon. Maybe he will not be re-elected, or there will be impeachment, after which a new Obama will come, and everything will fall into place, ”Blokhin noted.

He also did not rule out the possibility that Brussels, speaking of a unified army, is trying to strengthen its position in the dialogue with Washington, so that the EU can be seen there as an equal partner.

At the same time, Konstantin Blokhin admits that under certain conditions, Europe can achieve significant progress in creating a common army. According to the expert, the next resonant step by the USA, which will meet with sharp rejection in the EU and “nullify Europe’s remaining loyalty,” can become such an incentive. ”