Colonel Lars O Jonsson is the commanding officer of the Bergslagen Artillery Regiment A 9 (based in Kristinehamn, western Sweden). In FSN Perspektiv, he describes the teamwork involved in building up a regiment, reflects on the progress made since the 2020 Defence Decision, and considers the challenges encountered along the way.

If one plays with time and imagines that building a regiment takes a full hour (equivalent to approximately ten years), the first quarter has now elapsed.

In December 2020, the Swedish Parliament (Riksdag) passed the 2020 Defence Decision (FB 20). The political mandate was unanimous and represented a paradigm shift, the likes of which had not been seen since the 1950s. A clearly defined, accelerated expansion of the Swedish Armed Forces (Försvarsmakten) was to take place, with more combat units added to the war organisation, while the peacetime organisation was also to be substantially reinforced.

Five new regiments and one wing were to be re-established. Four of these would fall under the Army, resulting in a nominal growth of peacetime regiments of almost 30 per cent. This was to take place across four locations that entirely or largely lacked any military activity: Västernorrland Regiment with the Jämtland Field Hunters I 21 in Sollefteå and Östersund (northern Sweden), Dalregementet I 13 in Falun (central Sweden), and the Bergslagen Artillery Regiment A 9 in Kristinehamn (western Sweden).

Immediately after the political decision, we initiated planning within the Army, where I personally coordinated the planning at the Army Staff. How were we to accomplish this task after several decades of regiment closures and an absence of relevant experience? We did have some empirical basis through the re-establishment of P 18 on Gotland (the strategically important Swedish island in the Baltic Sea) in 2018, but building large-scale production capacity at four locations by 2030 represented an entirely different context and magnitude.

The success factors we defined during the spring of 2021, which I still maintain are valid, were as follows:

Wholeness. The Army is re-establishing four regiments, with the Army Chief holding ownership. The re-establishment is a matter of concern for all, with a particular responsibility assigned to certain designated sponsor units. Army Headquarters, the Swedish Fortifications Agency (Fortifikationsverket), and the Swedish Defence Materiel Administration (FMV) support the Army's re-establishment effort.

Together. Given the lack of experience in building military capability, and the fact that "we are who we are" before sufficient capacity has been created at the new locations, we have distributed responsibility between I 13, I 21, and A 9. In relation to actors outside the Swedish Armed Forces, we cooperate primarily with the respective municipality, county administrative board, regional authority, and the Swedish Fortifications Agency.

Standardised. We are building the new regiments rationally and standardising facilities to a high degree. This approach saves time and money.

Orders as we go. The old adage "planning is everything, the plan is nothing" is truly applicable in this context. The train has left the platform; we are laying the track as we go and must stop to make corrections whenever one rail fails to run parallel with the other.

So how are things progressing after the first quarter?

Despite the fact that it takes only two to three years to close down regiments following a political decision, and up to ten years to build rational production platforms for basic training and the training of our combat units, I am genuinely impressed. Four regiments have been re-established in the Army across five locations. Command and support structures are in place. Basic training is being conducted at all regiments.

At the Bergslagen Artillery Regiment A 9, the first fifteen minutes have been marked by various hiccups, but thankfully without any serious derailments. Development has therefore been positive, with several milestones achieved. This is largely thanks to the fact that we learn as we go, challenge our processes, working methods, and regulations, and are willing to take risks.

After many years of reductions and a "maintenance mentality," this has been absolutely necessary. This has meant, for example, that I frequently make decisions that are most advantageous given the anomalies found in the Swedish Armed Forces' various regulatory frameworks, at the risk of having to reverse course and start again, or simply sitting down with other agencies to discuss each party's requirements for governance or control and placing them in context.

To illustrate the many milestones achieved, consider the date of 11 March 2024: A 9's first conscripts reported for duty, the first excavator rolled onto the Villingsberg training and firing range, the Army Chief made a decision on the procurement of infrastructure for the permanent regiment, and the Swedish Armed Forces marked NATO accession with a coordinated flag-raising ceremony, including at A 9.

A 9 is now ready for the next phase.

The removal lorry has departed for the permanent regimental area, where occupation of temporary office modules has taken place. Our first 15-month soldiers have reported for duty, and we are preparing for a further intake in August at the Villingsberg training and firing range. We continue to recruit permanently employed personnel towards our target of approximately 250 staff, with a further approximately 100 for the garrison. We are prepared to receive upgraded and new 155 mm Archer artillery systems, as well as new capabilities for the artillery. We are dimensioning and constructing temporary and long-term infrastructure in Villingsberg and in Kristinehamn (western Sweden). The excellent cooperation with Kristinehamn Municipality and the Swedish Fortifications Agency is firmly established and continues to develop. We are beginning to embrace Kristinehamn Garrison by welcoming the Örebro-Värmland Group and the Swedish Armed Forces Technical School to Kristinehamn during 2024. We are preparing for how Kristinehamn as a military-geographic hub can contribute to host nation support linked to the Defence Cooperation Agreement (DCA) with the United States and a status agreement with NATO.

Despite only one quarter having passed, with 45 minutes still remaining to build military capability, things are actually going very well indeed.

Colonel Lars O Jonsson

Commanding Officer, Bergslagen Artillery Regiment A 9, 2022

Previously coordinator for the Army's re-establishment, 2020 to 2022