Swedish military makes major move involving Russian-owned estate near naval base

Sweden moves to seize Russian-owned estate near naval base

Sweden's Defence Ministry has ordered the forced sale of a waterfront property on an island south of Stockholm, citing the need to protect a nearby underground naval base from potential drone threats. The move, reported by Swedish media, underscores growing security concerns in the Baltic region.

The property, located on Muskö Island, about 40 kilometres from the capital, was intended to become a luxury home of up to 600 square metres for a Russian businessman and his wife, who holds both Russian and Swedish citizenship. Although the Swedish government did not name the couple, Swedish newspaper Expressen identified the owner as Stanislav Aleshchenko, a businessman with ties to the regime of President Vladimir Putin.

The Defence Ministry's decision was announced by Defence Minister Pal Jonson, who said the National Fortifications Administration had taken steps to expropriate the property. "The Swedish Armed Forces state that they have an immediate need for this property for military defence purposes," he said, according to the Sydney Morning Herald.

The military, quoted by The News International, said the location offers "unique conditions for strengthening the defense of Musko Naval base, particularly against drones." According to the military, the development of Russian drone warfare has shifted Sweden's strategic outlook, making the site essential for establishing an effective defence.

The property is the only site near the base not under the armed forces' control. The expropriation application was submitted under a legal provision allowing the state to acquire land needed for national defence.

The underground base at Muskö, built in the 1960s and once compared to a James Bond villain's lair, was decommissioned after the Cold War but reactivated in a major construction project over the past nine years. It includes docks, tunnels, and a shipyard carved into rock on the Baltic Sea.

Sweden's chief of defence staff, Carl-Johan Edstrom, said in a statement: "We are in the most serious security situation since the end of World War II, and the threat to Sweden and the alliance is real."

The move comes amid a broader pattern of suspected Russian hybrid activity in the region. German investigators have found three drones and suspected explosives near Leipzig airport in recent weeks, Romanian forces destroyed a marine drone near a gas project in the Black Sea, and Poland experienced two instances of rail sabotage last year. In February, Swedish forces disrupted a drone launched from a Russian ship near a visiting French aircraft carrier in Swedish waters.

Sweden joined NATO two years ago and has confirmed an increase in Russian incursions near its coastline. Last December, a Swedish officer said the navy encountered Russian submarines in the Baltic Sea on an "almost weekly" basis.

The property was purchased in 2017 for 18 million Swedish kronor (about $2.6 million), and the new home was partly dug into the rock. Tatiana Sazonova, the businessman's wife and formal owner, said she was unaware of the nearby military base, calling it an "unfortunate, unfortunate coincidence."