Abstract Introduction: Swedish soldiers expose themselves to significant risks in international efforts, despite the risks soldiers are still motivated to participate in operations for Försvarsmakten (FM). Most often, expert assessments of risks have been formed before a specific effort that excludes the soldiers 'subjective perception of the threats and risks that may arise, this can mean that soldiers risk getting inadequate information about future risks and that training prior to intervention lacks important and central parts of the soldiers' risk assessment. Aim: The study aims to investigate risk understanding and risk perception by interviewing Swedish soldiers who have been in place in Afghanistan. Method: The study uses a case study based on the implementation of qualitative interviews. Results: When collecting data and during the analysis process, three main themes were identified with the following subcategories. Conclusion: The respondents' experience of the international effort highlights that their risk perception does not correlate with the risk understanding they had with them from home. The assignment changed the respondents' subjective risk understanding and risk perception.