Ulf Kristersson

Prime Minister, Sweden

🔴LIVE | Sweden PM Ulf Kristersson & Defence Minister Hold Press Conference at NATO Forum | AC113

📅 Jul 07, 2026 EU Insider 29 MIN 21 VIEWS 23 SEGMENTS · 6 SPEAKERS

Ulf Kristersson, Pål Jonson, Sweden, Swedish Prime Minister, NATO, NATO Defence Industry Forum, Ankara, Turkey, Mark Rutte, defence, security, Europe, NATO Summit, press conference, world news, EU Insider, LIVE, Sweden news 🔴LIVE | Sweden PM Ulf Kristersson & Defence Minister Hold Press Conference at NATO Forum | AC113 Sweden's Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and Defence Minister Pål Jonson hold a joint press conference at the NATO Defence Industry Forum in Ankara. The briefing is expected to focus on NATO cooperation, European security, defense investment, and alliance priorities ahead of t...

What Ulf Kristersson said

Written from the verified transcript and checked against it. Every figure links to the moment it was said.

Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson clarified that Sweden's three procured GlobalEye aircraft will be operational from Swedish bases starting in early 2027, while the 10 GlobalEyes under NATO's pooling and sharing arrangement will operate from Germany. He emphasized that combining Swedish submarines, GlobalEye, and Gripen fighters has made the Baltic Sea more protected and surveilled than ever. Kristersson defended Sweden's decision to initially provide Ukraine with Erieye (GlobalEye's predecessor) instead of Gripen fighters, to avoid complicating the introduction of two complex systems alongside F-16s. He noted that Ukraine is purchasing 16 new Gripen fighters long-term, while Sweden provides 16 pre-owned fighters. He rejected the notion that focusing on F-16s was a mistake, citing pilot and introductory capacity limitations, and recounted a Ukrainian fighter pilot calling the Gripen a 'game changer' after test flights.

Key takeaways

Sweden's three GlobalEyes will be operational from Swedish bases starting in early 2027, while NATO's 10 operate from Germany.
Sweden provides Ukraine with 16 pre-owned Gripen fighters alongside Poland's agreement for 16 new ones.
Kristersson said the Baltic Sea has never been as protected and surveilled as now, citing submarines, GlobalEye, and Gripen.
Sweden initially provided Erieye instead of Gripen to Ukraine to avoid complicating F-16 introduction.
A Ukrainian fighter pilot told Kristersson and Zelensky the Gripen is a 'game changer' after test flights.

Numbers and commitments

Figure	What it refers to	Type	At
3	GlobalEye aircraft procured by Sweden	metric	0:19
10	GlobalEye aircraft under NATO pooling and sharing	metric	1:15
early 2027	When Sweden's first GlobalEye becomes operational	timeline	1:15
16	Pre-owned Gripen fighters Sweden provides to Ukraine	metric	4:54
16	New Gripen fighters Poland agreed to provide Ukraine	metric	4:54
200	Missions flown by a Ukrainian pilot in a MiG before Gripen training	metric	9:32

Chapters

0:00GlobalEye operational timeline and basing
2:04GlobalEye performance in conflict
4:54Swedish defense capabilities and Baltic security
7:53GlobalEye range and Ukraine surveillance
9:32F-16 versus Gripen decision

Questions asked in this interview

0:19Can you clarify what you meant by that?
1:05And would there ever be plans to create sort of a GlobalEye hub for NATO inside of Sweden, or would they just be dispersed where operations are needed?
2:48And Ulf Kristersson, why is Sweden so strongly committed to weaponizing Ukraine, sending Gripen fighters, even new Gripen fighters, to Ukraine? Why so?
3:41So that's why they flew it all the time. So what can I say?
7:21And if there's a decision up to the alliance, will Sweden be in favor of it?
9:10Do you think it would have been better if decisions would have been otherwise?

Moderator 0:00 ↗

has the right to defend itself inside and outside of its territory according to international law, of course. Thank you. Next question goes to the lady in the end of the first row.

Elizabeth Gossamo 0:19 ↗

Hi, I'm Elizabeth Gossamo from Breaking Defense. My question is for the Swedish prime minister. Earlier during the announcement, I just wanted to clarify: you said that we would see the GlobalEye operating from Swedish bases starting from 2027, if I understood that correctly, and now we were talking about delivering the aircraft to NATO by 2030. Can you clarify what you meant by that?

Ulf Kristersson 0:45 ↗

Well, I just stated the fact that we use them ourselves as well, and we have a generational shift from the old model to GlobalEye, and that has been going on for the last years, and they will be operational early next year.

Elizabeth Gossamo 1:05 ↗

And would there ever be plans to create sort of a GlobalEye hub for NATO inside of Sweden, or would they just be dispersed where operations are needed?

Ulf Kristersson 1:15 ↗

Above my pay level, please. Well, these GlobalEyes are of course — the 10 GlobalEyes are supposed to be operating from Germany. Then of course we have procured three GlobalEyes, getting the first one starting from early 2027, which will be operating from Sweden. So there's both — bilaterally, countries are procuring from Saab, and then we have the pooling and sharing arrangement with up to 10 GlobalEyes within the confines under the authority of NATO, of course.

Moderator 1:45 ↗

Thank you. Next question goes to TV4, first row here.

Reporter 1:52 ↗

I have a question for Mr. Michael Johansson. You mentioned that the GlobalEye had already proved itself in a conflict situation. Can you elaborate a little bit more on that?

Michael Johansson 2:04 ↗

Well, obviously, I mean, it's been flying 24/7 during the Iran conflict in the Middle East. But it's been flying in the Middle East to check threats for a long time, but that's apparently a conflict where it's been used a lot.

Reporter 2:20 ↗

And did you get a report back from the United Arab Emirates about how it performed?

Michael Johansson 2:29 ↗

Absolutely. We get lots of information on all our systems, how they are being used both in Ukraine and in the Middle East. So that's important feedback. Yeah, but it's been working tremendously well.

Moderator 2:41 ↗

Thank you. Okay, we will take the gentleman over here.

12 more exchanges in this transcript

Cite this transcript

APA, MLA, BibTeX

APA

Kristersson, U. (2026, July 7). 🔴LIVE | Sweden PM Ulf Kristersson & Defence Minister Hold Press Conference at NATO Forum | AC113 [Interview transcript]. EU Insider. CEOInterviews.AI. https://ceointerviews.ai/interview/2958345/

MLA

Ulf Kristersson. "🔴LIVE | Sweden PM Ulf Kristersson & Defence Minister Hold Press Conference at NATO Forum | AC113." EU Insider, 7 Jul. 2026. Transcript, CEOInterviews.AI, https://ceointerviews.ai/interview/2958345/.

BibTeX

@misc{kristersson2026_2958345,
  author       = {Ulf Kristersson},
  title        = {🔴LIVE | Sweden PM Ulf Kristersson \& Defence Minister Hold Press Conference at NATO Forum | AC113},
  howpublished = {Interview transcript, EU Insider. CEOInterviews.AI},
  year         = {2026},
  month        = {jul},
  url          = {https://ceointerviews.ai/interview/2958345/},
  note         = {Speaker-attributed transcript with timestamps}
}

▶

Key Quotes (2)

“Well, I just stated the fact that we use them ourselves as well. And we have a generational shift from the old model to Global Eye and that has been going on for the last years and they will be operational early next year. These Global Eyes are of course the 10 Global Eyes are supposed to be operating from Germany. Then of course we have procured three Global Eyes getting the first one starting fr”

▶ 0:45 POLICY

“Well, just to add on that, I think if you combine the Swedish maritime resources, not least the submarines and then the Global Eye and the Gripen fighters, I think it's fair to say that in our part of the world, including Europe, the Baltic Sea has never been as protected and as surveilled as it is right now and for good reasons because it hasn't been as challenged as it is today either. So there ”

▶ 4:56 POLICY

Mentioned in this interview

Saab SAAB-B.ST: Countries procure GlobalEye from Saab; technology praised by Michael Johansson.

NATO: Pooling and sharing arrangement for 10 GlobalEyes under NATO authority.

Ukraine: Receives Erieye and Gripen fighters; air defense needs discussed.

Russia: Mentioned as potential adversary in deterrence context.

Zelensky: Met with Kristersson in Uppsala; present when pilot called Gripen a game changer.

Poland: Made agreement for 16 new Gripen fighters for Ukraine.

Erieye: Predecessor to GlobalEye, provided to Ukraine to enhance F-16 capabilities.

F-16: Ukraine received F-16s from other countries; Sweden provided Erieye to support them.

Earlier, on the same topics

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Oct 22, 2025 at 3:51 →

“This is the moment where Europe must take greater responsibility for our own defense. Sweden is a leading country to that. We want the summit to manifest strongly increased European ambitions and to set a new ambitious goal for defense spendings. A few months ago, as you know, Swedish government ann”

Jun 13, 2025 at 9:16 →

“My main message and I do think you will agree when I say this to the Secretary General is that Sweden, we take our responsibilities as a NATO ally very seriously. With a strong sense of urgency and solidarity. We are carrying out our largest increase in defense spending since the end of the Cold War”

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About Ulf Kristersson

Ulf Kristersson, Sweden's Prime Minister and leader of the Moderaterna party, cast his vote in the country's general election on September 13, 2026, in his hometown of Strängnäs. In remarks to media, he described the election as a choice between "two completely different views on fundamental justice issues," citing mortgage tax and volume discount policies as key differences between his blue-yellow bloc and the red-green opposition. He expressed confidence in his coalition's preparedness, noting that his government had negotiated for four years and confirmed eight consecutive budgets, and said he felt "very hopeful" about the outcome. He also commented on the parliamentary landscape, observing that with eight parties in the Riksdag and no party close to a majority, the ability to compromise is essential for governing. In the weeks before the election, Kristersson participated in a televised debate with Social Democratic challenger Magdalena Andersson, where he criticized her party's approach to crime and elder care, and was questioned in his hometown by SVT. He defended his government's record on immigration, stating there is "no deportation policy" but that Sweden had tightened "an overly extensive asylum immigration" while seeking to increase highly qualified labor immigration. In an interview with The Economist in May, he discussed Sweden's NATO membership, saying the country had historically relied heavily on the U.S. while formally neutral, and that joining NATO had deepened cooperation with neighboring allies. He also witnessed the signing of a €4.3 billion agreement with France in August for the acquisition of four frigates, which he described as a significant investment in Sweden's defense capabilities.

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