(Adnkronos) – In a climate of strengthening defenses that is involving most NATO members, Sweden and Finland, the ‘new entries’ of the alliance, have updated their survival manuals for wars and crises to be distributed to the population.
Stockholm and Helsinki, which joined the Atlantic Alliance only after the start of the Ukrainian conflict, have decided to distribute manuals with very detailed instructions on how to prepare for the effects of military conflicts, communication outages, power outages, and extreme weather events. From bottled water and health product supplies to growing edible food at home, government authorities have offered advice on how residents can sustain themselves in the event of war. CNN writes this, adding that the pamphlets also include advice for parents and caregivers, instructing people to stock up on diapers, medicine, and baby food.
According to the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB), the Swedish government began distributing the pamphlet “Om krisen eller kriget kommer (If crisis or war comes)” to all five million households yesterday. The manual, first published during World War II and now in its fifth edition, will place “greater emphasis on war preparedness,” MSB said. The digital version of the booklet, published in October, has already been downloaded about 55,000 times, the agency added.
“The state of the world has deteriorated drastically in recent years. War is taking place in our vicinity. Extreme weather events are becoming increasingly common. Terrorist threats, cyber-attacks, and disinformation campaigns are being used to undermine and influence our work – reads a statement on the MSB website – To withstand these threats, we must stand united and take responsibility for our country. If we are attacked, everyone must contribute to defending Sweden’s independence and our democracy. We build resilience every day, together.”
New content in the 2024 edition includes tips on evacuation, how to stop bleeding, how to deal with anxiety, preparing pets, how to talk to children about crises and war, and how to support particularly vulnerable members of the population.
The Finnish Ministry of the Interior has also published a new crisis guide, providing readers with advice on how to prepare for long power outages, water outages, telecommunications outages, extreme weather events, and military conflicts. Earlier this year, Norway and Denmark – two other NATO members – had distributed an updated war guide on how to prepare for potential crises.
