On 24 October 2017, the Swedish government proposed stricter rules on weapon export. The proposal suggests that the destination country’s democratic status shall be of central consideration in a licence application. The less democratic standing, the harder to get approval for the export of the military equipment. No licence will be approved if there are serious violations on human rights or demerits on the country’s democratic standing. Also, whether the export countervails a sustainable development in the country will be considered during a licence application.
The government has also appointed the advisory authority, Inspectorate of Strategic Products, to research and propose a control system for the exported military equipment. This is aimed to obtain additional tools to ensure that military equipment brought out of Sweden goes to intended recipients, thus preventing diversion to unauthorized recipients.
Moreover, a researcher will analyse how to consolidate the national guidelines for the export control related to military equipment with the international requirements.
The rules are proposed to enter into force on 15 April 2018.
