Now Aurora 23 begins – the largest national military exercise in over 30 years. In the air, on the ground and at sea, the Swedish Armed Forces will practice stopping a major armed attack against Sweden. Around 26,000 people are participating in the Aurora 23 military exercise, which runs from April 17 to May 11. The exercise will be seen and heard in many parts of the country, mainly in Skåne, Småland, where most of the combat exercises on training fields take place, as well as on Gotland. Some combat exercises also take place on civilian land and shooting with loose ammunition occurs. In Norrbotten, the Swedish and Norwegian Home Guard will practice. Combat aircraft and other military aircraft must take off from air bases around the country. Along the coasts of southern Sweden, battleships and corvettes will practice. The US participates with a destroyer. One of the most important exercises is Sweden’s ability to receive foreign military aid. In addition to Swedes, soldiers from 13 countries are participating. From Norway, approximately 700 US Marine Corps soldiers with equipment are to be transported via Jämtland and Härjedalen. In Oskarshamn, a hundred British soldiers will secure the harbor and airport so that Sweden can receive a motorized rifle battalion of a thousand soldiers from Finland.
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