This thesis purpose is to analyze specific content in Sweden’s doctrine to illustrate a trend in doctrine development in small states. Small states doctrine tends to promote political messages rather than messages about operational efficiency. Due to this trend, it is important to study how small states implement and accept these types of developments. Kjell Bjerga and Torunn Haaland describes this phenomenon through an analysis of the Norwegian doctrine. The arguments they point out creates a tool, which explain concepts in Sweden’s military strategic doctrine. This thesis then takes a discursive form to identify the doctrines hidden roots and underlying narratives. It is then possible to structure concepts such as operational efficiency or operational inefficiency. The result of this analysis is that Sweden follow the development in small states strategic doctrine, decreasing the amount of concepts promoting operational efficiency. The result comply with Bjerga and Haalands theory and confirm the question at issue. This may lead to a dilemma where Sweden cannot achieve military operational efficiency because their doctrine promoting messages hard to translate to distinct military action.

<p>Förändringar i den svenska säkerhetspolitiken under 2000-talet har gjort att Försvarsmakten i större utsträckning bidrar med trupp till internationella fredsfrämjande insatser världen över. Dessa har endast varit i konfliktområden med så kallade irreguljära aktörer. Förändringarna har gått fort och det finns delar av Försvarsmakten som inte hunnit med i omställningen. Reglementen och doktriner är ett av dessa områden. Arbetet med doktrinerna har precis börjats men det finns idag inget arbete som påvisar hur relevanta doktrinerna är för den verksamhet som Försvarsmakten bedriver i internationella insatser idag.</p><p>Syftet med uppsatsen är att börja fylla detta kunskapshål och undersöka i vilken grad Försvarsmaktens militärstrategiska doktrin är tillämpbar för irreguljära konflikter och besvara frågeställningen: Är <em>Militärstrategisk doktrin</em> relevant som vägledning för att lösa Försvarsmaktens uppgifter i irreguljära konflikter?</p><p>I uppsatsen beskrivs irreguljära konflikters bakgrund och karaktär samt aspekter som anses viktiga för att insatser skall lyckas med att skapa fred i konflikterna. Utifrån teorin formas operationella indikatorer vilka används i en kvalitativ textanalys för att undersöka den militärstrategiska doktrinen. Resultatet visar att Försvarsmaktens Militärstrategiska doktrin inte är relevant som vägledning i irreguljära konflikter. Den innehåller inte tillräckligt mycket information som anses vara viktig för att insatser skall lyckas. Doktrinen fyller inte längre sitt syfte utan behöver revideras.</p> / <p>Changes in the Swedish security policy during the 21^st century have made the armed forces extending their international peacekeeping efforts worldwide. These missions have only been in conflicts with so-called Irregular armed forces since year 2000. The changes have been rapid and there are areas within the Armed Forces who haven’t kept up with them. Regulations and doctrines is one of those areas. The work with revising these doctrines has just begun but there is currently no efforts being made to demonstrate the relevance of the doctrines for the work the Armed Forces is undertaking in international operations.</p><p>The purpose of the paper is to start the process of amending this lack of knowledge and to examine to what extent the Armed Forces military strategic doctrine is applicable for conflicts with irregular armed forces and also to answer the question: Can the military strategic doctrine be considered a relevant guide in solving the tasks of the Armed Forces in conflicts with irregular armed forces?</p><p>The paper describes the background and characteristics of conflicts with irregular armed forces. It also describes aspects of these conflicts which are considered essential for the efforts to succeed in establishing peace. Using this theory as a starting point, operational indicators are formed that can be textually analysed qualitatively to investigate the military strategic doctrine. The result shows that the Armed Forces Military Strategic doctrine cannot be considered a relevant guide when dealing with conflicts with irregular armed forces. The doctrine does not contain enough information deemed essential for success. The doctrine no longer fills its purpose, but needs to be revised.</p>

Förändringar i den svenska säkerhetspolitiken under 2000-talet har gjort att Försvarsmakten i större utsträckning bidrar med trupp till internationella fredsfrämjande insatser världen över. Dessa har endast varit i konfliktområden med så kallade irreguljära aktörer. Förändringarna har gått fort och det finns delar av Försvarsmakten som inte hunnit med i omställningen. Reglementen och doktriner är ett av dessa områden. Arbetet med doktrinerna har precis börjats men det finns idag inget arbete som påvisar hur relevanta doktrinerna är för den verksamhet som Försvarsmakten bedriver i internationella insatser idag. Syftet med uppsatsen är att börja fylla detta kunskapshål och undersöka i vilken grad Försvarsmaktens militärstrategiska doktrin är tillämpbar för irreguljära konflikter och besvara frågeställningen: Är Militärstrategisk doktrin relevant som vägledning för att lösa Försvarsmaktens uppgifter i irreguljära konflikter? I uppsatsen beskrivs irreguljära konflikters bakgrund och karaktär samt aspekter som anses viktiga för att insatser skall lyckas med att skapa fred i konflikterna. Utifrån teorin formas operationella indikatorer vilka används i en kvalitativ textanalys för att undersöka den militärstrategiska doktrinen. Resultatet visar att Försvarsmaktens Militärstrategiska doktrin inte är relevant som vägledning i irreguljära konflikter. Den innehåller inte tillräckligt mycket information som anses vara viktig för att insatser skall lyckas. Doktrinen fyller inte längre sitt syfte utan behöver revideras. / Changes in the Swedish security policy during the 21st century have made the armed forces extending their international peacekeeping efforts worldwide. These missions have only been in conflicts with so-called Irregular armed forces since year 2000. The changes have been rapid and there are areas within the Armed Forces who haven’t kept up with them. Regulations and doctrines is one of those areas. The work with revising these doctrines has just begun but there is currently no efforts being made to demonstrate the relevance of the doctrines for the work the Armed Forces is undertaking in international operations. The purpose of the paper is to start the process of amending this lack of knowledge and to examine to what extent the Armed Forces military strategic doctrine is applicable for conflicts with irregular armed forces and also to answer the question: Can the military strategic doctrine be considered a relevant guide in solving the tasks of the Armed Forces in conflicts with irregular armed forces? The paper describes the background and characteristics of conflicts with irregular armed forces. It also describes aspects of these conflicts which are considered essential for the efforts to succeed in establishing peace. Using this theory as a starting point, operational indicators are formed that can be textually analysed qualitatively to investigate the military strategic doctrine. The result shows that the Armed Forces Military Strategic doctrine cannot be considered a relevant guide when dealing with conflicts with irregular armed forces. The doctrine does not contain enough information deemed essential for success. The doctrine no longer fills its purpose, but needs to be revised.

Militär doktrinutveckling har beskrivits som en process där kunskap och beprövad erfarenhet omsätts i principer för användandet av militära medel. Militärteorin erbjuder vetenskaplig förankring till militära doktriner och dess påverkan på utvecklingen av doktriner är därför viktig. Förra året, 2011, gav Försvarsmakten ut en ny militärstrategisk doktrin, MSD12. Syftet med denna uppsats är att undersöka kopplingen mellan den svenska doktrinen och dess vetenskapliga förankring. Undersökningen visar bland annat att von Clausewitz teorier, såväl direkt som indirekt, har haft stor influens på doktrinen. Det är dock skillnad mellan hur doktrinen beskriver det som Clausewitz benämner krigets natur och vad som verkligen står i boken ”Om kriget”. Clausewitz beskriver krigets natur som en märklig treenighet sammansatt av den primitiva våldsamheten i dess element, hatet och fiendskapen som tillsammans kan betraktas som en blind naturkraft; av sannolikheternas och tillfälligheternas spel, som ger utrymme för ett fritt skapande sinne; och slutligen av att vara ett till politiken underordnat instrument, varigenom det betingas av det rena förståndet. Doktrinen beskriver krafterna som bildar krigets natur som Emotionell kraft(folket), Styrande rationell kraft (politiken) och Våldsutövande kraft (Försvarsmakten). Det är viktigt, bland annat kopplat till behovet av vetenskaplig förankring, att skilja på vad Clausewitz verkligen skrev och på andra förklaringsmodeller som härstammar från Clausewitz men som också på vissa punkter skiljer sig från originaltexten i ”Om kriget”. / The development of military doctrines has been described as a process where knowledge and well-tried experience turns to principles for the use of military forces. The military theory offers a scientific basis for military doctrines and influences from military theory are therefore an important part of the development of doctrines. Last year, 2011, The Swedish Armed Forces released a new military-strategic doctrine, MSD12. The purpose of this essay is to examine the link between the Swedish doctrine and its scientific basis. The examination has shown that the theory of Carl von Clausewitz regarding the nature of war has a great impact and influence on the content of the doctrine. The theory is used both through direct- and also through indirect influences. An analysis of how the doctrine relate to the factors that, according to Clausewitz, constitute the nature of war shows a discrepancy between its definition of the "remarkable trinity" and the definition given by Clausewitz himself. The book “On War” defines the components of the “trinity” as: The play of chance and probability, Primordial violence, hatred, and enmity and War's element of subordination to rational policy. The doctrine state that the “trinity” consists of: Emotional forces (the people), Rational forces (The politics and the policy) and Violence conducting forces (The Swedish Armed Forces). It is important to make a difference between what Clausewitz actually wrote and other concepts of a trinity that are derived from the “remarkable trinity” defined in “On War.

According to theorist Harald Høiback, a doctrine should consist of three salient elements in order to qualify as an adequate and functional document; theory, culture and authority. The occurrence of these elements throughout the doctrine can furthermore be refined, resulting in three different areas of utility; education, command and change. However, Swedens’ contemporary military doctrine consists of a series of documents, including a strategic and an operational doctrine. This evidently evokes questions regarding the contexture and most appropriate purpose of each doctrine, and furthermore whether vertical coherence between the doctrinal levels can be identified or precluded. Focusing on Swedens’ military doctrine in whole, this single-case study uses a qualitative text analysis to identify key elements in each doctrine. This thesis therefore enables conclusions regarding doctrines as a specific conceptual tool, and deductions considering consistency between different levels of doctrines. Findings reveal that Militärstrategisk doktrin 2016 is mainly influenced by cultural elements, most suitably being utilized as a tool of education. Operativ doktrin 2014 however emphasizes authority, resulting in a more suitable doctrine as a tool of command. Concluding the results, this thesis shows that Swedens’ doctrinal series does not manifest vertical coherence in terms of consistency between levels. However, further research is required to confirm whether the absence of coherence between the doctrinal levels generates negative effects, or whether it’s positive considering complementing aspects.

The research debate concerning small states and military doctrine development delivers two main arguments for and against the ability of these states to formulate doctrines specifically adapted to their strategic contexts. One argument supports the view that a small state has limited ability to develop properly adapted doctrines because they are influenced by larger states. The opposing argument claims that small states’ ability should be better than those of their larger counterparts due to the fact that small state organizations are smaller and are therefore likely to be more adaptable. These two arguments lay the foundation for this essay. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the Swedish military doctrines from 2012 and 2016 to determine the extent to which they are specifically adapted to Sweden’s conditions. Specific Swedish conditions have been identified in order to enable an analysis of the Swedish military doctrines and how they are attuned to these conditions. Findings of the analysis show that one of the military doctrines exhibits a low level of adaptation to Swedish conditions, while the later military doctrine is found to be partially adapted to Swedish conditions. These findings are vital to the debate on the relationship between small states and military doctrine development and expose the need for further research.

The modern doctrines of today are becoming more and more ambiguous about what their true message really is. Modern authors try to balance between writing doctrines who forces its readers to follow the doctrine as slaves, or writing it in such a way that it is completely impossible to comprehend by the soldiers and officers to which it was meant to help in the first place. On top of this modern doctrine seem to aim towards addressing far more audiences than the traditional foot soldier.  The introduction of the latest Swedish strategic doctrine clearly states that the doctrine aims to serve more than one purpose, which is fine. However, the doctrine fails to mention what its main purpose is. The aim of this thesis is to examine which of the aforementioned purposes is the doctrines main purpose.  Research findings indicate that the doctrine is using authoritative and theoretic elements over cultural ones throughout its content. Because of this reason this thesis finds the doctrines main purpose to be used as a tool of command.   The main conclusion of the thesis is that the doctrine does not join its brethren in being as abstract and unclear as some of the military theorists claim modern doctrine to be. However, additional research needs to be conducted to further validate the results.

Sedan det kalla krigets slut har Sverige förändrat sitt strategiska agerande till att i högre grad omfatta säkerhetspolitiska och militära samarbeten. Dessutom har Försvarsmakten bytt militärstrategiskt fokus från en utpräglat defensiv tyngdpunkt till att eftersträva ett mer offensivt agerande i samarbete med andra nationers militära styrkor. Denna uppsats undersöker, med en longitudinell fallstudie, om den militära doktrinens balans mellan offensiv och defensiv kan förklaras utifrån nationell strategisk kultur. Fallstudien görs på Sverige, vars strategiska kultur och militära doktrin undersöks vid två tillfällen, slutet av 1980-talet respektive mitten av 2010-talet. Undersökningen betraktar den strategiska kulturen som en intervenerande variabel vilken begränsar militärens valmöjligheter i fråga om offensiv eller defensiv tyngdpunkt vid utformning av militär doktrin. Studien påvisar en kausal påverkan vid ett av de studerade analystillfällena och en samvariation mellan den strategiska kulturen och doktrinen i det andra. Undersökningen kommer till slutsatsen att inte bara funktionella, utan även strategiskt kulturella, faktorer påverkar balansen mellan offensiv och defensiv tyngdpunkt i den svenska militära doktrinen.

This study examines the changes and presents the construction of the leadership discourse in Swedish Armed Forces Military Strategic doctrine from 2016 and 2022. Both debate articles and scientific articles have been published concerning the leadership in Swedish military. The opionions vary from positive to negative arguments. Due to this and the amount of changes that the Swedish Armed Forces are undergoing the study aim to contribute to a more profound understanding of military leadership thoughout a discourse analysis. The study shows that there has been changes between the different editions. The later has substantially fewer mentions of leadership. It is also found that the later one does not mention anything about genderperspective or ethical considirations. The analysis also presents a comparison to the original leadership model, called developmental leadership, that the Swedish Armed Forces have used to construct their own model. This results in that the discourse concerning Swedish military leadership is leaning towards a more task oriented leadership that dismiss emotional support.

According to the doctrinal dilemma, the construction of military doctrines is challenging. Either the doctrines become too explicit and specific or they become too abstract for the target groups, both of which have negative consequences. The purpose of this study is to examine to what extent the dilemma exists and how it is taken into consideration in the doctrinal development process. In order to analyse the dilemma, two Swedish doctrines have been reviewed and their authors interviewed.   The results indicates that the doctrinal dilemma has had a central role in the doctrinal development process of both doctrines. The authors have handled the dilemma through constructing abstract rather than specific doctrines. The study also reveals that it is necessary that doctrines are consistently formulated and that the users are acquainted with the style of the doctrine. The dissertation contributes with an increased understanding of the dilemma, facilitating the construction of doctrines and enabling that they can serve as force multipliers.