Sweden plans to send an army battalion of 800 troops to Latvia early next year to reinforce the Nato enhanced forward presence battle group based in Latvia,  announced Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson, eng.lsm.lv, the website of Latvian national broadcaster LSM, reported on January 10.

"Sweden and its neighbours are living in the direct shadow of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine," Kristersson said. "But Russia’s threats, disinformation and cyber attacks are an attempt to destabilise the whole of Europe."

Formerly non-aligned Sweden is expected to be joining Nato soon, becoming the 32nd member of the alliance. The deployment would be one its first contributions to Nato.

Before Sweden joins, it is still necessary to obtain the agreement of Turkey and Hungary to extend the alliance. US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said this week that Turkey looks set to ratify Sweden's membership in Nato in the coming weeks. Hungary is expected to accept Sweden once Turkey does.

Swedish newspaper DN, citing its sources, says the government plans to send a mechanised battalion to Latvia, which will include about 800 soldiers, as well as armoured vehicles and combat cars, possibly also Leopard tanks. The Swedish army's management plans for this unit to arrive in Latvia in early 2025.

Latvian Defence Minister Andris Spruds (Progressives) says in a conversation with DN that this is great news for Latvia because the presence of Nato forces is important for Latvia's security.

"We are pleased with this important decision, which, together with the upcoming admission of Sweden to Nato, will become a significant investment in strengthening regional security and the defense of Latvia," Spruds said.

The Swedish battalion is expected to form part of the Canada-led Nato force's enhanced forward presence battle group.

In the summer of 2023, Latvia and Canada signed an agreement to double the number of Canadian soldiers stationed in Latvia, eng.lsm.lv said.