ctive (1998). In Sweden you are obligated to be a member of the Reservists until the age of 47. Conscripts to the Army and Navy must serve for 7-15 months, and the Air Force for 8-12 months. There are also over one million men and women who belong to voluntary organizations offering civil defense training.Seventy percent of the Military equipment is produced domestically (including advanced fighter aircraft). The Swedish Armed Forces have a number of underground installations to protect them against nuclear attack. Under evacuation procedures, people remaining in cities would be housed in underground shelters that provide space for 5.5 million. Another one of Sweden’s defense strategies is stockpiling food in times of war.Sweden’s Army is organized in field and local defense units. Its largest and most versatile is their infantry, Northern Sweden and their armored brigades. The Navy places emphasis on light, fast ships and submarines capable of maneuvering among small islands along Sweden’s coast. The Air Force is supplied with domestically produced Saab combat aircraft.3. Political Parties: Sweden’s political structure allows for a multiparty system to exist. Although minority parties have the right to exist, one party in particular has held power for the better part of the last half of the century with almost no interruption at all. This party is the left-wing Social Democratic Party (Socialdemokratiska Arbetarepartiet, SdAP). The SdAP has dominated the Swedish Political system from 1932 until 1976 and then from 1982 until 1991 and then again holding power from 1994 until the present. Sweden Prime Minister, Goran Persson, currently leads the SdAP. It was formed in 1889 and advocates socialist economic reform (although during its tenure the bulk of Swedish businesses has remained in private hands). Most of the Party’s socialist orientations manifest in government economic planning (increasi...
