Sweden will order four navy frigates from France's Naval Group in a $4 billion deal that will triple its air defence capacity as the new NATO member focuses on security threats in
Sweden will order four navy frigates from France's Naval Group in a $4 billion deal that will triple its air defence capacity as the new NATO member focuses on security threats in the Baltic Sea, its prime minister said on Tuesday.
Sweden is racing to build up its military in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine and the Nordic country's subsequent accession to NATO, with the new frigates representing a significant expansion of maritime defence capabilities.
The purchase of the French Defence and Intervention (FDI) frigate model will be Sweden's biggest military investment since the 1980s, Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson said.
"The Baltic Sea has never in the modern era been as exposed, questioned and contested as it is now," Kristersson told a press conference on board the Swedish naval corvette HMS Harnosand, docked in central Stockholm for the occasion.
"With this decision I am convinced Sweden is contributing to making the Baltic Sea considerably safer in the future."
Adding the frigates to the naval arsenal will alone triple Sweden's air defence capabilities, Kristersson said.
The first delivery is expected in 2030, with the total cost of the four frigates estimated at some 40 billion Swedish crowns ($4.25 billion).
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