Sweden’s military will take part in the surveillance and protection of Finnish territory using Gripen fighter jets and a corvette warship, with the deployment planned to continue at least until the end of 2026, Finland’s Defence Forces said on Friday.
“The Swedish equipment strengthens air surveillance in particular, releasing the Finnish Defence Forces’ own resources for repelling violations and incidents, if need be,” the Finnish military said in a statement, Reuters reported.
Finland and Sweden, which are NATO’s two newest members, already maintain close bilateral defense cooperation. Finland shares a 1,340-kilometre (833-mile) eastern border with Russia.
“Sweden has responded to a request from Finland to strengthen its air defence due to the deteriorating security situation,” Swedish Defence Minister Pal Jonson told Reuters. He added that, under the agreement, Swedish armed forces could help Finland repel violations of its territory if necessary.
In addition to fighter jets and vessels equipped with drone-combat capabilities, Sweden may also contribute ground-based anti-drone systems, Jonson said.
Military drones entering the airspace of Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have raised concerns that the war in Ukraine could spill over into NATO’s northern borders with Russia. As Ukraine increases attacks on Russian oil shipping ports in the Baltic Sea, some Ukrainian drones have missed their targets, triggering security warnings in neighboring countries.
Separately, Swedish defense company Saab, which manufactures the Gripen fighter jet, said on Friday that it had won a 1.2 billion Swedish crown ($126 million) order from Finland for its RBS 70 NG portable air-defense missile system.