Militarization of Scandinavian Peninsula is at full speed

nivek

As Above So Below
US, Sweden, And Finland Boost Military Cooperation To Form New Alliance

The US, Swedish, and Finnish defense ministers signed a trilateral Statement of Intent (SOI) to expand defense cooperation on all fronts. The signing ceremony took place in Washington on May 8. In 2016, the two Scandinavian nations finalized separate defense SOIs with America. Now they have signed a joint document to unify those previous agreements and enhance their interoperability.

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The Scandinavian visitors claimed this was just a starting point for a more mature relationship. The agreement emphasizes the countries’ combined joint exercises and streamlines the procedures that have been established to manage them.

Other issues covered by the SOI include regular trilateral meetings at all levels, the exchange of information (including about weapons systems), increased practical interaction, cooperation in multinational operations, improved communications, and the promotion of the EU-NATO strategic partnership.

The latter issue will transform the Scandinavians into a connecting link that will eliminate the chance of any European deterrent that could operate with any real independence from its North American “big brother.”


Washington wants to make sure that the PESCO agreement will not protect Europe’s defense industry from US companies.

Sweden hosted the Aurora military exercise in September 2017, the largest such event on its soil. The US supplied most of the visiting troops. The American military has also taken part in a number of drills in Finland recently. That country will host a large-scale NATO exercise as early as 2020 or 2021. The US has already been invited. The militarization of the Scandinavian Peninsula is moving full speed ahead.

The recently signed SOI actually transforms the bilateral agreements into enhanced trilateral cooperation. For Stockholm and Helsinki, joining NATO is not an option for domestic political reasons. At least not for now. Instead, a new US-led defense alliance has emerged.

The increased tempo of exercises anticipates a larger US presence.

It has far-reaching implications. With American military personnel rotating in and out of Sweden and Finland, any offensive action against one of those states would officially be an attack on a NATO member. It would trigger a response as envisaged by Article 5 of the Washington Treaty. Russia considers any American military presence there as provocative.

The US is not a Scandinavian country. If an incident took place that resulted in a clash between Russian and US forces, the two Scandinavian nations would be pulled against their will into a conflict they may have nothing to do with. The American soldiers on their soil will never be under the control of their national commands. More US presence means less sovereignty and more risk.

Actually, since they are EU members they don’t even need Article 5, because Article 42.7 of the EU treaty also contains a binding mutual-assistance clause.

France invoked it after the 2015 Paris terror attacks.

Last year Sweden and Finland joined the UK-led Joint Expeditionary Force (JEF). All other participants in the nine-nation formation are NATO members. It means that in an emergency their armed forces will operate under NATO command, becoming parties to a conflict they could avoid if they were really neutral.
The two also cooperate with Washington through the Northern Group (NG), which consists of 12 countries, although Sweden and Finland are the only non-NATO participants. That organization holds its own dialog with the US. Another venue is the five-nation Nordic Countries group, that includes these two non-aligned members.

In reality, Sweden and Finland have already joined NATO through other groups and agreements.

They did so informally, avoiding referendums and the relevant parliamentary procedures at home. This should be viewed as part of a broader picture. In early April, the first-ever US-Baltic States summit took place in Washington. It was an unprecedented event that somehow was kept out of the media spotlight.

The leaders of NATO’s “frontline states” called for a permanent US military presence in the region.

They want that to be much larger than just American participation in multinational battalions. They are asking for a permanent presence on a much wider scale. Washington, which already has forces deployed in Norway and Poland, is considering rotating American troops through the Baltic nations as well. Poland and the Baltic states are a focus of NATO’S bellicose preparations.

One might as well forget about the 1997 Russia-NATO Founding Act (1997), which states that no substantial forces should be deployed in the proximity of the borders. That document has already been breached by NATO.


The US guests have provided advice on how to promote American influence (they call it “democracy”) in Georgia, Moldova, and Ukraine, the members of a newly formed anti-Russian alliance. and it’s not just the defense sector. Last year, Lithuania began importing liquefied natural gas (LNG) from America. Poland has also built an LNG terminal to expand the shipments of American gas to Europe, which compete with Russia’s energy supplies.

The withdrawal from the Iran deal is not the only time a US position on an issue has been opposed by the leading European nations.

There are many more points of disagreement. Old Europe is gradually creating an independent deterrent. A rift between the EU and the US is deepening. But as one can see, Washington is building another pro-American alliance on the continent. It does not mean it will replace the North Atlantic alliance. Certainly not. On the contrary, it will strengthen the US position in the bloc.

But aside from NATO, Washington also leads an informal alliance of “frontline states” that are intimidated by a nonexistent threat.

The idea of the Russia bogeyman is being exploited by the US in order to reach its foreign-policy goals. Northern Europe is being turned into a hornet’s nest, with its good-neighbor policy gradually being replaced with confrontation that benefits the US but makes the region less secure.

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nivek

As Above So Below
I agree that the EU rift with the US is growing...The EU is falling away from its core values and slowly falling into despair and with an ever increasing threat of radical islamic terrorism that they invited into their countries...
 

nivek

As Above So Below
Today I Learned. Get with the new slang nivek! :Thumbsup:

I don't really use abbreviated communication, young people today are losing language and spelling skills that way with using social media...I guess that's the new short hand?...

Sweden and Finland are not official members of NATO but through back door and third party agreements they essentially are...
 

3FEL9

Islander
Sorry to say.. Theres no militarization going on here..

Maybee in the minds of the military.. They are totally lost. Investing in the wrong kind of equipment, and doing laughable 'stunt' missions abroad.

But IF it was real I would support it 100 %..


I know where our enemies are, and what they are up to. Its not exactly rocket science.
 
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nivek

As Above So Below
What about in the North and East of your country?...Anything going on there?...

Maybe its all incognito so Russia can't spy in on their activities?...
 

3FEL9

Islander
What about in the North and East of your country?...Anything going on there?...

Maybe its all incognito so Russia can't spy in on their activities?...

Its like this. They have nothing to show for.. The agreement with NATO/US is just a very desperate move.

If shit happens they just call Mr. Trump.. No use sending out poorly trained millenials with no good equipment.
 

nivek

As Above So Below
The agreement with NATO/US is just a very desperate move.

I think the US needs to pull out of NATO...I would support that 100% if Trump brought it up...Poland is America's strongest ally in NATO, everyone else in NATO has agendas that don't align with us...

If shit happens they just call Mr. Trump.. No use sending out poorly trained millenials with no good equipment.

If Sweden calls Trump, we will be there...q37
 

3FEL9

Islander
I think the US needs to pull out of NATO...I would support that 100% if Trump brought it up...Poland is America's strongest ally in NATO, everyone else in NATO has agendas that don't align with us...

If Sweden calls Trump, we will be there...q37

I think the sitution is a little bit better in Finland. They have never dropped their guard like we have. I dont know about Norway.
Denmark has 1 patrol boat ( last time I checked ) I was wrong. They have more than so,lol
 
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nivek

As Above So Below
I think the sitution is a little bit better in Finland. They have never dropped their guard like we have. I dont know about Norway.
Denmark has 1 patrol boat ( last time I checked ) I was wrong. They have more than so,lol

Norway outranks Denmark and Finland who are ranked close by the way...Sweden is ranked better than Denmark, Norway, and Finland, Sweden has more military aircraft but less naval craft and less personnel although Sweden has more fit personnel ready to arm if needed than Finland does...

Here's some comparisons and overall details of their military might and reserves:

Military power comparison results for Finland vs. Sweden

Military power comparison results for Denmark vs. Sweden

Military power comparison results for Norway vs. Sweden

2018 Sweden Military Strength

2018 Norway Military Strength

2018 Denmark Military Strength

2018 Finland Military Strength
________________________________

This link contains the complete list of countries and ranking for 2018:

2018 Military Strength Ranking

The complete Global Firepower list for 2018 puts the military powers of the world into full perspective.


The finalized Global Firepower ranking relies on over 55 individual factors to determine a given nation's PowerIndex ('PwrIndx') score. Our unique formula allows for smaller, more technologically-advanced, nations to compete with larger, lesser-developed, ones. Modifiers (in the form of bonuses and penalties) are added to further refine the list. Some qualities to observe in regards to the finalized ranking:

+ Ranking does not rely solely on the total number of weapons available to any one country (though it is a factor) but rather focuses on weapon diversity within the number totals to provide a better balance of firepower available. For example, fielding 100 minesweepers does not equal the strategic / tactical value of fielding 10 aircraft carriers.
+ Nuclear stockpiles are NOT taken into account but recognized / suspected nuclear powers do receive a bonus.
+ First World, Second World, and Third World statuses are taken into account.
+ Geographical factors, logistical flexibility, natural resources, and local industry influence the final ranking.
+ Available manpower is a key consideration; nations with large populations tend to rank higher due to the availability of personnel for supporting both war and industry.
+ Land-locked nations are NOT penalized for lack of a navy, however, naval powers ARE penalized for lack of diversity in available assets. For example, 100 patrol boats does not equate the same advantage that fielding 4 guided-missile frigates and 2 nuclear-attack submarines does.
+ NATO allies receive a slight bonus due to the theoretical sharing of resources should one of the members commit to war.
+ Financial stability / strength is taken into account as finances represent one of several important factors in running a successful campaign.
+ Current political / military leadership is NOT taken into account as this can be highly subjective and not necessarily influence in-the-field indivudal combat performance.

For 2018 there are a total of 136 countries included in the GFP database. New to 2018 are Ireland, Montenegro, and Liberia.

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nivek

As Above So Below
I think the sitution is a little bit better in Finland. They have never dropped their guard like we have


Finland continues to build their military up, these corvettes are badass...

Finland's Getting Ice-Breaking Missile Corvettes With Serious Air Defense Abilities

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The U.S. State Department recently approved the potential sale to Finland of more than $800 million worth of RGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles, RIM-162 Evolved Sea Sparrow surface-to-air missiles, Mk 41 vertical launch systems, and other associated items.

Depending on how that country decides to proceed with its Squadron 2020 naval modernization program, some of those systems could go into a new class of ice-breaking multi-purpose corvettes, as well as end up on older ships as part of various planned upgrade projects.

image

A rudimentary breakdown of the systems the Finnish Ministry of Defense wants on the new Squadron 2020 corvettes.
 

Castle-Yankee54

Celestial
Finland continues to build their military up, these corvettes are badass...

Finland's Getting Ice-Breaking Missile Corvettes With Serious Air Defense Abilities

image


The U.S. State Department recently approved the potential sale to Finland of more than $800 million worth of RGM-84 Harpoon anti-ship missiles, RIM-162 Evolved Sea Sparrow surface-to-air missiles, Mk 41 vertical launch systems, and other associated items.

Depending on how that country decides to proceed with its Squadron 2020 naval modernization program, some of those systems could go into a new class of ice-breaking multi-purpose corvettes, as well as end up on older ships as part of various planned upgrade projects.

image

A rudimentary breakdown of the systems the Finnish Ministry of Defense wants on the new Squadron 2020 corvettes.

Nice looking vessel.......they are starting to look like the Zumwalt.
 
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