Under the exercise scenario, Sweden was supposedly facing the threat of an attack from an unnamed country increasing its military presence along NATO’s eastern border.
The drills focused in part on the Swedish island of Gotland, where authorities simulated power outages and food shortages caused by sabotage.
Jonas Wikstrom said the scenario was realistic enough that “theoretically this could happen tomorrow.”
A group of Ukrainian drone pilots invited to take part in the exercises played the role of the aggressor force.
One 24-year-old Ukrainian drone pilot, identified by the callsign Tarik, told AP that the Ukrainian operators had effectively “destroyed” Swedish troops during the training.
“They stopped the exercises three times to figure out how to do better, but if this had been real life, they would already be dead,” Tarik said.
Another Ukrainian drone operator with the callsign Karat said Swedish troops have strong potential but still need to improve their drones and tactics. He added that commanders also need a deeper understanding of modern drone warfare.
After the exercises concluded, Michael Claesson said all Western militaries must learn how to operate drones effectively and that the fastest way to do so is by listening to Ukrainian experience.