Swedish Defense Minister names best way to peace in Ukraine
Photo: Paul Jonson, Minister of Defense of Sweden (Getty Images)
The best way to achieve peace in Ukraine lies in increasing military aid to Kyiv and tightening the pressure of sanctions on Russia, stated Swedish Defense Minister Pål Jonson in an interview with RBC-Ukraine.
"I think that the best thing for the road to peace in Ukraine is the increased military assistance to Ukraine and increasing sanctions on Russia," Jonson said.
According to the minister, it is crucial to intensify sanctions, especially in the energy sector, and to more actively combat Moscow’s so-called shadow fleet by identifying more vessels.
Jonson also emphasized the importance of using frozen Russian assets to support Ukraine's defense industry.
"Then Putin will understand that this war is also threatening his own power base. And he knows he will not be successful in this war," the Swedish Defense Minister stressed.
He also reminded that last year, Russia lost more than 300,000 troops and managed to capture less than 0.5% of territory overall.
Sweden's aid to Ukraine
Sweden continues to actively support Ukraine both militarily and humanitarianly.
Recently, the government announced a new humanitarian aid package worth 1.1 billion Swedish kronor (over 116 million euros) ahead of the winter season.
The funds will be directed toward Ukraine's most urgent needs, including energy, reconstruction, demining, and other critical sectors.
Earlier, it was reported that Sweden had provided Ukraine with $836 million in military aid, including the delivery of Archer self-propelled artillery systems.
As part of the latest package, the country is purchasing 18 new Archer systems and an additional 155mm ammunition worth $327 million. In total, Ukraine will now have 44 of these artillery systems, whose effectiveness has been proven by Ukrainian forces in combat against Russian targets.
