Sweden Hosts NATO Civil Defence Conference in Stockholm as Allies Elevate Civil Preparedness

STOCKHOLM, November 3, 2025 – Sweden is hosting a NATO civil defence conference in Stockholm from November 3-5, 2025, bringing together allied military and civilian leaders to advance civil-military collaboration. The event is led by Sweden’s Minister for Defence Pål Jonson and Minister for Civil Defence Carl-Oskar Bohlin.

The conference follows Sweden’s expanded emphasis on civil defence, underlined by a Skr37.5bn ($3.9bn) allocation in 2024, and comes after a June 2025 NATO summit in The Hague where allies adopted new guidance to strengthen civilian planning and funding.

Focus: Strengthening NATO Civil Preparedness

Allies are set to deepen alignment on civil preparedness, a core NATO concept that is closely linked to defence. For NATO, ‘civil preparedness’ covers three related functions:

• Continuity of government services
• Continuity of essential services for the population
• Ensuring civil support for military operations

At the conference, officials will explore best practices, vulnerabilities, and the role of critical national infrastructure in deterrence and resilience. Panel discussions include Sweden’s new assessment, ‘Planning assumptions for the development of the Swedish total defence 2025-2030’, alongside sessions dedicated to exchanging cross-border experiences and lessons learned.

Allied Spending and Policy Guidance

The Hague summit’s guidance was reflected in allied defence spending, which was raised to 5% of a nation’s gross domestic product, with up to 1.5% allocated to civil concerns such as protecting critical infrastructure – an obvious area of vulnerability across Europe.

The policy shift signals a stronger integration of civilian planning with military readiness, prioritising infrastructure protection, continuity planning, and societal resilience in the face of evolving threats.

Sweden’s Total Defence Model in the Spotlight

Sweden’s approach to total defence – integrating military and civil capabilities – features prominently. The country reinstated conscription in 2018, and it was said that 8,000 people would be enlisted in 2024, a target Politico said had been reached in July 2024.

Beyond manpower, Sweden’s infrastructure is designed to support military operations. The Air Force can conduct dispersed operations with Gripen fighter jets using reinforced roads, enhancing survivability and flexibility in crisis scenarios.

Europe’s Military Mobility Challenges

By contrast, broader European military mobility remains constrained. European auditors found that tanks from one EU country cannot move through another if they exceed domestic road weight limits. Under current regulations, an EU country generally requires 45 days’ notification for cross-border movement authorisations, complicating rapid reinforcement toward NATO’s eastern flank.

Different Allied Approaches to Civil Defence

The United Kingdom has been debating how to better align its civil and military resources. In discussions at the Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) in December 2024, officials and experts suggested that the UK should rethink the role of reservists, moving away from treating them as an adjunct to regular forces. General Jim Hockenhull, commander of Cyber and Specialist Operations Command, held that the military ought to see the strategic value inherent in the reserves in any case, not to lean on them on an ad hoc basis in times of crisis.

What the Stockholm Conference Will Cover

According to organisers, the Stockholm event will:

• Highlight civil-military collaboration frameworks across NATO
• Share national case studies on civil preparedness and infrastructure resilience
• Detail Sweden’s 2025-2030 total defence planning assumptions
• Address cross-border coordination and logistics under crisis conditions

The objective is to translate policy guidance into practical measures that bolster allied readiness, with a particular focus on the resilience of energy, transport, and communications networks.

Background: Why Civil Defence Matters Now

As hybrid and conventional threats evolve, NATO allies are placing new emphasis on whole-of-society resilience. Civil defence – from emergency planning to infrastructure hardening – is increasingly seen as essential to deterrence, enabling sustained military operations and continuity of public services under stress.

Sweden’s selection as host underscores its recent investments and longstanding doctrine linking civilian and military capabilities. The country’s budgetary commitment and infrastructure readiness position it as a key contributor to alliance-wide civil preparedness.

Conclusion: Next Steps for NATO Civil Preparedness

The Stockholm conference is expected to produce shared priorities and implementation insights for allied civil defence, aligning national plans with NATO guidance adopted in June 2025. Outcomes are likely to inform future exercises, infrastructure protection measures, and updated national strategies as allies operationalise civil preparedness across the alliance.