Understanding the Baltic Sea
In any potential conflict on the Baltic Sea, success will depend on understanding the complex environment in and around the water. Here, the Deputy Chief of the Swedish Navy, Brigadier General Patrik Gardesten, shares some insights into the Baltic Sea and how Sweden is helping to keep it safe.
The Baltic Sea is like no other body of water on the planet. It is the world’s largest area of brackish water, and its narrow entry point, thousands of small islands and unpredictable floor make it a challenge for navigation.
According to Brigadier General Patrik Gardesten, Deputy Chief of the Swedish Navy, understanding how the Baltic Sea’s conditions affect equipment such as sonar system is critical to defending it in times of conflict.
“The Baltic Sea is in many ways a very special and unique sea,”
“The Baltic Sea is in many ways a very special and unique sea,” he says during an interview for Saab’s Shielding the Baltic Sea film series. “It's very shallow with a depth of about 55 metres. The bottom topography is very varied. Over the year, the salinity and temperature also vary. All these factors affect how sounds propagates and the propagation of sound is crucial for us when searching for submarines and mines. This of course affects the material and equipment we need to carry out our task.”
Watch the series "Shielding the Baltic Sea" on YouTube
Situational awareness is key
Brigadier General Gardesten says situational awareness and being prepared for the unexpected is a key part of the Swedish Navy’s approach to defending the Baltic Sea.
“We need to have control over the surface and we need a baseline to assess. If this baseline is revised, then we adjust our readiness according to our needs.”
“Every day, there are about 4000 ships moving along our coastlines,” he says. “We need to have control over the surface and we need a baseline to assess. If this baseline is revised, then we adjust our readiness according to our needs.”
Brigadier General Gardesten says to maintain the advantage in the Baltic Sea the Swedish Navy and its allies need to keep pace with technological change.
“Today, technological development is progressing very fast,” he says. “It's not just us who are spurred on by technological advancements but also our adversaries. In order to meet them, we need to keep up and have access to today’s new modern technologies.”
Want to learn more? Our Shielding the Baltic Sea film series looks at the security challenges facing the Baltic Sea as well as some of the advanced technological solutions that are helping to address them. Watch it here.