Sweden has stationed troops on the island of Gotland in the Baltic Sea Thursday, September 15, 2016 8:20:25 AM

The supreme commander of the Swedish Armed Forces gave an order to permanently deploy 150 soldiers to the island of Gotland. The decision entered into force on September 15 at 7 a.m., the Local reported.

Swedish leaders had previously agreed to permanently deploy soldiers on the strategically located island in the Baltic Sea beginning in late 2017, but early in the morning of Wednesday, September 14, about 150 soldiers from mechanized infantry forces taking part in military drills on the island today received the order not to leave the island.

“The external factors in the world have deteriorated over time and I decided on a permanent presence and deployment of combat groups here,” the supreme commander of the Swedish Armed Forces, Micael Bydén, said. Bydén noted that Sweden isn’t under threat, but the political and security situations in the region have changed over the past few years.

The troops will remain on the island of Gotland and will later be replaced by other soldiers until the main division is created. Creation of the division is planned for the middle of 2017. “The divisions from different parts of Sweden will stay and work on the island and around Gotland until the combat group is created,” the statement from the Swedish Armed Forces says.

The island of Gotland was demilitarized in 2015. Last year, political parties from Sweden agreed to return servicemen there and increase the Swedish defense budget by SEK 10.2 billion (USD 1.2 billion) from 2016 to 2020. The leadership of the Swedish Ministry of Defense plans to expand the army and create an additional mechanized battalion (approximately 800 servicemen). A segment from this battalion (approximately 130 servicemen) will be stationed on the island of Gotland on a regular basis.

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