2025/11/10 by Joachim Bentzen · 1 voice
Engineering · Social Sciences · #European and Russian Geopolitical Military Strategies #Intelligence, Security, War Strategy #Military Strategy and Technology
paper · pdf · doi:10.1080/01402390.2025.2495294
openalex publication_date 2025/11/10 · openalex created_date 2025/11/25 · openalex updated_date 2026/06/15
Against the backdrop of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, Sweden and Finland have become members of NATO, marking the most substantive transformation of the strategic landscape in Northern Europe since the end of the Cold War. Using newly declassified materials from NATO’s archives in Brussels, this article analyses the evolution of the alliance’s Cold War descriptions of Scandinavia to inform the ongoing debate on the region’s role in NATO’s present military strategy. It traces Scandinavia’s military-strategic position through three phases of the Cold War, highlighting the region’s multiple roles in the Alliance’s strategy for deterrence and warfighting against the Soviet Union. The analysis demonstrates how Scandinavia grew in significance as technological advancements altered the perception of depth and range on the battlefield. In particular, the advent of long-range missiles tied Scandinavia’s military fate with Continental Europe and, eventually, with the United States. The article concludes by examining what this historical legacy may imply for the future of NATO’s Northern region.