Though 150 troops are hardly enough to withstand an incursion by an enemy force of battalion strength or heavier, these troops will be aided by the arrival of regular Swedish Army units next year that will include a mechanized company, an armored company, and command & control components.
So Gotland will have a mechanized battalion as a garrison. Given the small size of the Swedish army, I have to wonder what is left on the mainland?
This is good. No Russian subliminal war that counts on lack of effective military opposition will be possible here.
I especially like the deployment ahead of schedule that denies Russia the temptation of a long gap between plans to defend the island and actually defending the island.
Russian possession of Gotland would both shield Russia's Kaliningrad exclave and block NATO efforts to operate off of the coast of NATO Baltic states if under attack by Russia.
Our Marines, who station a brigade's worth of equipment in Norway, should familiarize themselves with Gotland (and other Baltic Sea islands).
