By Simon Johnson and Tom Little
TOFTA, Gotland, SWEDEN (Reuters) -The Swedish island of Gotland holds the key to control of the Baltic Sea, according to Swedish and Polish officers taking part in military exercises this week aimed at deterring a possible Russian attack amid escalating tensions between NATO and Moscow.
"It's basically like a huge aircraft carrier in the middle of the Baltic," Quartermaster Oscar Hannus of the Swedish Navy said, framed by one of Sweden's RBS-15 missile systems that would be used against any seaborne threat to the island.
Hannus' unit, along with paratroopers and coastal missile forces from Poland, is one of several taking part in Operation Gotland Sentry, testing Sweden's and NATO's plans to deploy land, sea, and air forces in any rapid defence of Gotland.
"We're here on Gotland with our Polish allies ... in order to deter potential enemies from the East in case they want to subject us to any kind of threat here on Gotland or in the Baltic Sea," said Hannus.
Gotland, popular with Swedish tourists for its sandy beaches, has acquired a growing strategic significance as tensions with Russia have ratcheted up since President Vladimir Putin ordered a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
DETERRENCE POWER
Just 300 km (186 miles) from the home of Russia's Baltic Fleet in the exclave of Kaliningrad, Gotland dominates vital sea lanes and the island would be crucial if NATO had to send troops and supplies to reinforce the nearby Baltic states of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, most likely from Sweden.
"From the island, various long-range missile systems can be used to defend allies while simultaneously deterring Russia," said Ewa Skoog Haslum, Chief of Joint Operations in Sweden's navy at the military's Tofta shooting range on Gotland.
"The island also plays a crucial role in maintaining free supply routes for NATO forces as well as sustaining civilian maritime traffic, which is vital for the supply of several countries in the region."
Demilitarized after the Cold War, Sweden has been rebuilding its strength on the island, which is a 170 km (105 mile)-long rocky outcrop to the south of the capital Stockholm, in the face of an increasingly assertive Russia.
In 2018 Sweden reactivated the army's Gotland Regiment and has placed ground-to-air missile batteries on the island as well as beefing up other military infrastructure.
After decades of commitment to non-aligned status, Sweden joined NATO in March 2024, meaning it can now count on members of the alliance to come to its defence - and that of Gotland.
"When you put a missile unit on Gotland... you can secure almost the whole Baltic," said Vice Admiral Krzysztof Jaworski of the Polish Navy. "I would say it's important for every country in the Baltic Sea."
(Reporting by Simon JohnsonEditing by Gareth Jones)
