When Hedda Johannesson, like most of her school year group, received a questionnaire to determine whether she would be conscripted for military service, she considered herself anti-war.
But, having passed the necessary intelligence, physical and psychological tests, the 18-year-old behavioural science student will soon spend 11 months learning about chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear warfare.
It’s been only a year and a half since Sweden submitted its Nato application, marking a sharp change in the historically neutral country’s approach to defence and international relations. But in recent weeks a looming sense of potential conflict has swept the country as citizens were warned to prepare themselves for the possibility of war. » | Miranda Bryant in Stockholm | Friday, January 19, 2024
