Ministry of Defence

On 8 September, the Riksdag decided to grant the Government greater rights to give and receive operational military support within the framework of defence cooperation between Sweden and Finland. The Government will be able to take decisions on matters such as assisting Finland militarily to prevent violations of Finnish territory, and receiving military support from Finland to prevent violations of Swedish territory or respond to an armed attack against Sweden. Decisions to assist Finland militarily to respond to an armed attack against Finland must still be approved by the Riksdag.

Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist has taken part in a multilateral video meeting on 2 September concerning support to the countries in the Sahel region of Africa. The meeting was led by the French Minister for the Armed Forces, Florence Parly, and attended by defence ministers from about ten nations, as well as representatives from the European Union, the United Nations and the United States. The discussions focused mainly on the recent political developments in Mali.

Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist visited Poland on 14–15 August on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the Polish Armed Forces Day.

This compilation contains a selection of acts and ordinances – both new and amended – that enter into force in mid-2020.

Defence Minister Peter Hultqvist attended a meeting of NATO defence ministers on 18 June concerning the affect the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the Alliance’s members and partner countries. The meeting was also attended by EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell, as well as the defence ministers of Finland and Australia.

On 18 June, Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist met German Minister of Defence Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer and the defence ministers of the Nordic countries via video link. From Denmark Minister of Defence Trine Bramsen took part, from Norway Minister of Defence Frank Bakke-Jensen and from Finland Minister of Defence Antti Kaikkonen.

Defence Minister Peter Hultqvist attended the UK NATO Heads of Mission’s Forum on Monday 15 June 2020. The event was hosted by the Embassy of the United Kingdom in Sweden and Ambassador Judith Gough. The main theme of the conference focused on disinformation and cyber security.

Stockholm 15 June 2020. Check against delivery.

How many people work at the Government Offices? What was the central government budget like last year? How many acts and ordinances were issued last year? The answer to these and other questions can be found in the Swedish Government Offices Yearbook 2019.

Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist met his colleagues in the Northern Group security and defence policy forum on 20 May. On the agenda was the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on national and allied military capabilities and preparedness.

Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist attended a video conference meeting of NATO defence ministers on 15 April to discuss the ongoing COVID-19 crisis. Finland’s defence minister and EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell also attended.

The EU defence ministers held a video conference on 6 April. They discussed the latest developments and national responses to COVID-19. Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist took part in the video conference from Stockholm.

6 April 2020 Check against delivery.

Defence Minister Peter Hultqvist participated on March 30 in a teleconference with the other Nordic defence ministers within the framework of the Nordic defence cooperation NORDEFCO. The Danish Defence Minister Trine Bramsen hosted the meeting. The focus of the ministers' discussions was on the current COVID-19 pandemic.

Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist attended on 27 March a telephone conference with five other European Defense Ministers and the Defense Ministers in Mali and Niger to discuss a Task Force in the southeastern Mali - operation Takuba. The meeting, which was chaired by the French Minister for the Armed Forces Florence Parly, was held remotely due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Chatham House, 12 March 2020. As prepared. Check against delivery.

Defence Minister Peter Hultqvist meets with Britain's Minister for Defence Procurement Jeremy Quin in London on 11 March. The agenda includes discussing regional security in Northern Europe, the joint Future Combat Air Systems Cooperation (FCASC), the defence cooperation Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF) and the upcoming Swedish defence exercise Aurora 20. Peter Hultqvist will also be the keynote speaker at the conference "A New Era of Strategic Competition" at the think tank Chatham House.

Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist visited Karlskrona together with his Finnish counterpart Antti Kaikkonen on 9–10 March. The ministers discussed the security situation in the Baltic Sea region, bilateral defence cooperation, coming exercises, international missions and other issues of common interest.

On Wednesday 19 February, Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist received Hungary’s Minister of Defence Tibor Benkö at Karlberg Palace for a bilateral meeting.

Minister for Defence Peter Hultqvist attended the Munich Security Conference (MSC) from 14 to 16 February. This year’s theme was “Is the world becoming less Western?”.