Photo: AP Photo/Michael Sohn
BERLIN, 22 March /TASS/. NATO and EU countries must prepare for a long-term conflict with Russia, Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom said. The minister noted that Sweden plans to send part of a mechanized battalion to Latvia and will reinforce its naval forces off Gotland and in the Baltic Sea.
"We must understand that we are facing a long-term conflict with Russia. This concerns NATO and the EU. We have to prepare accordingly," he said in an interview with Deutsche Welle [considered a foreign agent in Russia]. According to the foreign minister, this concerns the Baltic states and Poland in particular.
Billstom noted that Sweden plans to send part of a mechanised battalion to Latvia and will reinforce its naval forces off Gotland and in the Baltic Sea. He added that Sweden already patrols the airspace in the region and uses its submarines for similar purposes.
Earlier, the foreign minister said he considered the most urgent task to be strengthening Gotland, which is often described as a "huge aircraft carrier".
On 26 February, the Hungarian Parliament ratifies the agreement on Sweden's accession to NATO. After Turkey, Hungary was the last country to ratify the protocol on Sweden's accession to the alliance. Helsinki and Stockholm received an official invitation to join NATO during the Madrid Summit in June 2022. On 7 March, Sweden's accession protocol officially entered into force, making the country the 32nd member of the alliance.
TASS/gnews.cz-JaV_07
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