Scenario: Russian Invasion of the Baltic States

[IronDuke99]

Originally Posted by wulfir

Sweden has declared it will not remain neutral with the so called “declaration of solidarity” and participates in a number of NATO drills and NATO operations (Cold Response, Afghanistan, Libya). The Swedish ground forces are however in a pitiful state when compared to the large but less advanced cold war army. Sweden could I imagine contribute no more than a battle group of battalion(+) size as a sort of symbolic force at present. But could also open its borders and air fields to NATO air.

But, in Sweden there is an anti-immigration party which seems to steadily be gaining ground. This party views Putin/Russia in a favourable light. Should this party be in power at the time of a Russian invasion of the Baltics I assume there would be no Swedish reaction (assuming the invasion takes place a few years from now)...


Finland has retained the conscription army and can mobilise considerable conventional forces should Finland come under threat. Even if Finland does not deploy forces to the Baltic states I imagine Russia would not leave the northern flank completely open…

At the risk of getting too political why would an anti immigration party in Sweden (and I presume it is anti Islamic immigration) be pro Putin and Russia? Or, to put it another way, why would a pro Islamist immigration party be anti Putin and Russia? Surely Putin's Russia is not the biggest threat to Sweden right now?

I am genuinely puzzled by this, given my own ideas about who the enemies of Western civilisation actually are: To my mind all forms of militant Islam, closely followed by China (actually a huge longer term threat) and, way back, North Korea.

I do think there is a window right now to make Russia much less of a potential enemy than she has been any time since the early 1900's. It may, or may not, get taken...