Minister for Civil Defence visits Ukraine – statement of intent signed and civil support package presented

Since Russia’s full-scale and brutal invasion of Ukraine, Sweden has provided substantial multilateral civil support to Ukraine through the EU Civil Protection Mechanism. The total value of Swedish support via the EU Civil Protection Mechanism is around SEK 985 million.

Minister for Civil Defence Carl-Oskar Bohlin has travelled to Ukraine this week to sign a statement of intent alongside Ukraine’s Minister of Internal Affairs, Ihor Klymenko. The statement of intent is an important step in strengthening bilateral cooperation, in addition to multilateral support. 

As the statement of intent was signed, a civil support package to Ukraine – including materiel donations and long-term cooperation between Swedish and Ukrainian authorities – that the Swedish Government intends to approve was presented.

“Sweden will continue to support Ukraine for as long as it takes. The statement of intent that Mr Klymenko and I signed yesterday is a testament to this and will deepen the cooperation between our countries. As a first step, the Government intends to assist Ukraine through a civil support package that includes protective face masks via the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency and vessels from the Swedish Coast Guard,” says Mr Bohlin.

Statement of intent on closer collaboration between Sweden and Ukraine

The Swedish Ministry of Defence and Ukraine’s Ministry of Internal Affairs have signed a statement of intent to strengthen and deepen the cooperation between Sweden and Ukraine in the areas of civil protection and national resilience. 

The statement of intent highlights the importance of collaborating to ensure more secure supply chains and increased resilience to impacts on essential services and preventing and countering hybrid threats. 

Swedish Coast Guard and Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency tasked with collaborating with Ukraine 

As a result of the statement of intent, the Government will be tasking the Swedish Coast Guard with collaborating with its Ukrainian counterpart, the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine. The collaboration will entail the exchange of experiences and methods for civil maritime security, training initiatives and joint projects. It will also produce data that can be used as a basis for future Swedish materiel support to Ukraine. 

The Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency will also have a similar assignment in relation to its counterpart, the State Emergency Service of Ukraine (SESU). The Agency will be tasked with collaborating with SESU in the areas of civil protection and national resilience with regard to essential services and countering hybrid threats. The assignment also includes exchanging experience and methods for more secure supply chains. 

Materiel support to Ukraine

The Swedish Coast Guard will also be tasked with donating two environmental protection vessels, 24 cars, one van, one heavy goods vehicle and personal protective equipment that is no longer needed for government activities to Ukraine. 

The Swedish Coast Guard will be responsible for transporting the cars, van, heavy goods vehicle and protective equipment to Ukraine. But the two environmental protection vessels will be transferred in Sweden, once Ukrainian personnel have received training in the vessels’ operation. 

The Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency will also be tasked with acquiring 40 000 protective face masks and the associated filters and donating them to Ukraine. The value of this donation will be SEK 100 million. 

The donations will be financed within the three-year, SEK 75 billion economic ‘Ukraine framework’ adopted by the Government in May 2024.