The report concluded that, given Sweden’s NATO membership, the deteriorating security environment, and rapid technological developments, the government should no longer rely solely on military intelligence.
UND will work alongside MUST, the National Defense Radio Establishment (FRA), and the Swedish Security Service (Säpo).
“Several of our important EU and NATO partners have similar systems,” Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard said at a press conference, adding: “After regaining independence, Estonia chose to build its system along similar lines.”
She was referring to Estonia’s former Information Service, which initially operated under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and has since evolved into the Foreign Intelligence Service under the Ministry of Defense. The Estonian Defense Forces has a separate Intelligence Center.
Who Gives an Agent a False Identity?
The Swedish Armed Forces believes that creating the new agency could actually weaken the country’s intelligence capabilities. It argues that dividing intelligence responsibilities between civilian and military services is risky because different security threats are closely interconnected.
“There are concerns that gaps could emerge in intelligence work that Russia could exploit,” SVT security policy reporter John Granlund noted.
One of the most significant changes, according to the Armed Forces, is the transfer of MUST’s highly secretive human intelligence unit, KSI, to UND. This will give UND the authority to create false identities for Swedish intelligence agents operating abroad, issue passports and driver’s licenses under those identities, and make the necessary entries in the population register.