Posted on 05/28/2007 1:37:58 PM PDT by WesternCulture
Historians have long known that the Swedish DC3 shot down by a Soviet fighter plane in 1952 was being used to spy on military facilities on the other side of the Baltic Sea. But only now have the true aims of the covert operation been revealed.
Documents recently declassified show that Sweden was prepared at the beginning of the Cold War to launch retaliatory military strikes in the event of a Soviet attack.
But not all files have yet been released. According to Ingvar Åkesson, head of Sweden's National Defence Radio Establishment (Försvarets Radioanstalt - FRA), "there are structures from that time that are still very much current."
FRA has been the agency responsibly for intercepting military signals since 1942. It was particularly active during the Cold War years.
Åkesson revealed the nature of the DC3's mission in connection with Friday's presentation of the results of an army investigation into the incident.
"The mission was to find out what sort of facilities they had on the other side of the Baltic Sea, in the vicinity of marine ports and airfields, that could be used in a war against Sweden.
"The intention was, and this is clearly stated, to launch strikes against such facilities in a Swedish aerial attack. That was why it was necessary to carry out these reconnaissance flights," said Åkesson.
The documents also show that Sweden was prepared to launch retaliatory attacks on Soviet industry, communications and population centres. The potential targets included locations in the Baltic States.
The Swedish DC3 was shot down by the Soviet Union 65 kilometres east of the Baltic island of Gotska Sandön on June 13th 1952. It is however only four years since the wreck was found.
According to the new accident report, the blast was so powerful that all eight crew members most likely died on impact, although it is possible that one of the men managed to parachute out of the DC3.
Today, Swedes and Westerners in general ought to view the Russians as close allies and partners, but still, the Cold War ought not to be forgotten. Totalitarianism and oppression is always at our doorstep.
I view Russia as a part of the Western World and I truly admire all of the great achievements by the Russian people.
Let us all remember the Russians defeated Hitler.
“Sweden was prepared at the beginning of the Cold War to launch retaliatory military strikes in the event of a Soviet attack’
Well, duh. It’s not the Sweden is France, is it?
America had just A-bombed Japan into submission, and Russia didn’t have the bomb at this time. To say America was asleep in 1948 is, well, stupid. The US military had 1.5 million soldiers in 1948. The entire population of Sweden in 1948 was only 6.9 million.
“Let us all remember the Russians defeated Hitler.’
If Adolf hadn’t broached the nonaggression treaty, Russia would have gladly watched Hitler overrun UK and the west.
And present day Russia is looking less and less than a democracy.
Huh?
Americans did a thing or two during the Cold War at that time, with tens of thousands sacrificing their lives when it went hot in Korea.
Glad the Russians fought the Nazis, only problem is they killed 20 million of their own folks “building socialism” in the course of their 70 year experiment. And they exported that poison to other countries who in turn murdered millions (e.g. 40 million in China). The Ruskies ain’t our friends and neither are the Swedes who traded with the Nazis during WW2. Finland and Norway fought their invaders, even if the odds were long. The Swedes, well, they looked out for number one.
“The US military had 1.5 million soldiers in 1948. The entire population of Sweden in 1948 was only 6.9 million.”
- Correct. Still, we had an army of at least 500 000 men in those days. Later on, these numbers increased to around 1 000 000 men.
We were more ‘prepared’ than any other nation around the globe.
A popular supposition is that the Soviets signed the non-agression pact looking to see the west (Britain and France) fight it out to exhaustion and then the Soviets would go in and pick up the pieces. Stalin was surely shocked after he found himself all alone on the continent with Hitler after the fall of France.
You’ll like this one.
“Glad the Russians fought the Nazis, only problem is they killed 20 million of their own folks “building socialism” in the course of their 70 year experiment. And they exported that poison to other countries who in turn murdered millions (e.g. 40 million in China). The Ruskies ain’t our friends and neither are the Swedes who traded with the Nazis during WW2. Finland and Norway fought their invaders, even if the odds were long. The Swedes, well, they looked out for number one.”
- All true, although I think Russia could well develop into a close ally of the US. There are a lot of good things to be said of the Russians.
I wish I saw it coming, but I don’t. Putin is enjoying 80% favorable opinion ratings (if the numbers can be believed, that is). Vlad isn’t a friend of the US. He continues to run a government which sells arms and nuclear technology to our avowed enemies. Its kind of hard for Russians to own up to the criminality of the Soviet system, because its an indictment of their whole civilization. They have consistently underperformed their potential for the last 1000 years, and look to continue that record. Too bad for them and us.
“But I suspect some estimable historians would probably contest the
idea that America actually slept during that time period.”
- I guess there are scholars/professors ready and willing to support more or less anything. In the end, it probably depends on who’s paying their wages.
The Soviet Union developed and tested their first nuclear weapon in 1949. At that time, the US was paralyzed.
How well were they doing before the Americans got in the war. And they likely would not have won without American guns, tanks, trucks, aircraft...
Found this with a quick search:
"400.000 trucks, over 12.000 tanks and other combat vehicles, 32.000 motorcycles, 13.000 locomotives and railway cars, 8.000 anti-aircraft cannons and machine-guns, 135.000 submachine guns, 300.000 tons of explosives, 40.000 field radios, some 400 radar systems, 400.000 metal cutting machine tools, several million tons of foodstuff, steel, other metals, oil and gasoline, chemicals etc." and "Lend-lease aircraft amounted to 18% of all aircraft in the Soviet air forces, 20% of all bombers, and 16-23% of all fighters (numbers vary depending on calculation methods), and 29% of all naval aircraft."
http://lend-lease.airforce.ru/english/articles/geust/aircraft_deliveries.htm
“Americans did a thing or two during the Cold War at that time, with tens of thousands sacrificing their lives when it went hot in Korea.”
- By all means, this ought to be acknowledged and remembered.
As a European, I feel gratitude towards the US.
The US has done more in order to advance freedom and liberty than most other countries.
The boldness of Reagan and the men and women who dared to support him paved way for Europe of today, a continent where ALL people feel free to speak their minds without fear of being arrested by Stasi, Securitate and the KGB.
A European who does not realize this is, to say the least, an embarassment to Europe.
“The Ruskies ain’t our friends and neither are the Swedes who traded with the Nazis during WW2”
Ann Margret was born in Sweden. She can be my friend any day.
I could admit to a lot of improper actions carried out by Sweden throughout the centuries, but at least we seldom get paralyzed.
Read the article below and ask yourself this question;
- Where was the rest of the world when the Holocaust was revealed?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/White_buses
Another Swedish example of ‘not being paralyzed’ by evil:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raul_Wallenberg
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