The war in Ukraine quickly had a major impact on the Swedish National Guard, which received a record number of applications in 2022.
However, many did not understand what the National Guard was or what they were applying for, so about a third of the applications were soon withdrawn.
– I had an extremely high number of stupid applications that came in connection with the Ukrainian war, Jonas Algotsson, battalion commander of the National Guard in the Kalmar region, told the Swedish public broadcaster SVT.
In 2022, about 30,000 applications were received – compared to the 4-5,000 applications that normally come in during a year. About 10,000 of the applicants “withdrew their applications after realizing what the mission entails”, he said.
– We usually have a 10 percent drop-out rate. These are people ranging in age from military service to 70. Many are in life situations where they have young children, are studying, or are moving. But we have become more vigilant in ensuring that people complete their contracted time, Algotsson continues.
Uneven distribution
Despite the large number of less serious applicants, 2022 was still a very good year for the National Guard. A total of 5,200 people signed service contracts – while 3,800 ended their service.
Looking at the last five years, the number of active soldiers has increased by just over 1,000 people, but it is also noticeable that it is much more difficult for National Guard units that are not located in metropolitan areas to recruit new soldiers.
– It’s a bit special. Our population is small, and few people did their military service in the last years of the old system. To give you a comparison, when I did my military service in 1981-82, 47,000 people participated. In the last year of conscription, there were only 3,000 in the whole of Sweden, and I think most of them came from the metropolitan areas, Algotsson explains.
– The National Guard’s main task of guarding and protecting is extremely important, so it’s really important that we step up our game, he concludes.
