Elsa Widding to Pål Jonson: Don't send Swedish NATO soldiers to certain death in Ukraine

Elsa Widding, an independent member of parliament and party leader of Ambition Sverige, fears that Swedish NATO soldiers will end up in Ukraine. She confronted Defence Minister Pål Jonson. NewsVoice interviewed Widding after the debate.

Widding writes that the US has realised that the Ukrainian war is lost. Therefore, the US has withdrawn and seems to have no plans to supply Ukraine with more arms, but despite this, Sweden continues to send both money and weapons to Ukraine, prolonging the suffering of the Ukrainian people.

In October 2025, the Swedish Parliament approved a decision to participate in NATO's collective deterrence and defence activities. This gives the government a mandate in urgent situations (for example, when a war is being lost) to deploy Swedish armed forces for a limited time.

However, all wars are limited in time, so there is a wide margin of interpretation when it is ”urgent” and how long Swedish soldiers should be replenished as they die on a front to ”deter” and ”defend” Sweden in neighbouring Ukraine, which is not really a geographical neighbour.

This amendment is about NATO collective defence and operations, not specifically about a peacekeeping force in Ukraine, but Widding concludes that the government can still send soldiers to a war zone such as Ukraine.

Widding believes that Pål Jonson, who governs Sweden in all defence matters, is exposing Sweden to security risks with his general defence policy:

”Sweden's military support for Ukraine and the DCA, which allows US weapons on Swedish territory, constitute a strong provocation against Russia that exposes Sweden to extreme risks.”

Our young conscripts are being sacrificed by Pål Jonson and Ulf Kristersson when they are lured into the narrative of an imminent Russian threat," Widding told NewsVoice.

”They will face certain death if they are sent to Ukraine via NATO.”