Sweden strengthened combat readiness on the island of Gotland because of the “activities of Russia in the region”, the Agency of Agence France-Presse (AFP) reports with reference to the Swedish military.
It is noted that in the Baltic Island Gotland Sweden placed combat armored cars and military to patrols. The Minister of Defense of the country Peter Hultquiquist stressed that Sweden has strengthened its position to protect against the threat coming from Russia.
“The Armed Forces are making the necessary measures to protect the integrity of Sweden and to demonstrate our ability to defend Sweden and Swedish interests,” said Hultquivist.
Earlier, the deputy head of the Russian Foreign Ministry Sergey Ryabkov said that Russia at the moment is the main opponent NATO. This is due to its desire to “firmly consistently defend their own interests.” According to him, the United States and NATO refuse to meet Russia for security guarantees.