[Norway] A Message to Sweden

[Odinson]

KINGDOM OF NORWAY
MINISTRY OF DEFENSE
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
​

SUBJECT: In Need of Assistance
RECIPIENT: Peter Hultqvist, Secretary of Defense of The Kingdom of Sweden; Flora Larsson, Under Secretary of Defense for The Navy (@Connor )
SENDER: Kristoffer Solberg, Minister of Defense
SECURITY: TOP SECRET, ENCRYPTED

Mr. Secretary and Madam Under Secretary,

I have raised the Ministry of Defense's readiness level from Moderate to Elevated. The government is currently privately debating whether or not military intervention should take place in Belgium. Key members of the government (myself included), as well as another high institution within the kingdom's apparatus, are convinced that military intervention is unequivocally needed in Belgium. A communist government, which illegally seized power from the democratically-elected institutions of Belgium, has not only demonstrated its ability to massacre its own people as all previous communist governments throughout the world have done, but have also done other things such as kidnapping the Belgian Royal Family and holding them under house arrest, and also allowing the Belgian economy to fall into ruins. Some minor reforms have recently been announced, however every indication appears to point to them being farces to save face. On top of this, it is quite clear the Belgian people still want to remain part of the free world. The detractors in the Council of State and the party do not believe that this is Norway's responsibility, especially if there are not any partners assisting us. The Dutch have refused to allow us to base our forces in their territory, which has further complicated the situation. This is why I'm writing to you.

If we are able to conduct a successful operation without Dutch support, then there will only be one way to do it. While Norway is capable in this field, we would greatly benefit from Swedish support. This, however, is presumptuous if the Swedish government is not interested in aiding us. My convictions, and understanding of the present geopolitical climate, tell me that Sweden will support us. If I am correct, then what your armed forces could do most to help us would be to send your aircraft carrier and any available amphibious assault ships (to land our troops) with our task force. While we are sending a substantial escort for our own task force, we would be more than open to additional escorts from the Swedish Royal Navy. Please let me know if my assumptions are correct, and if any of this would at all be possible. I'm sure it goes without saying that this discussion is exceptionally sensitive and should be kept secret.


Regards,

Kristoffer Solberg
Minister of Defense

 

[Connor]

Government of Sweden
Löfven Administration

Security Classification: TOP SECRET
Document Classification and Security Act 1995
Encrypted by the Swedish Security Service​

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Dear Kristoffer Solberg (Minister of Defense, Kingdom of Norway),

I am distressed to hear of any elevation of our close allies readiness level as this clearly indicates to us that the situation in Belgium is spiralling.

The situation in Belgium has been of primary concern to the Kingdom of Sweden especially with our very clear position in Europe supporting the position of not only their monarchy but every existing monarchy in Europe - democratically deciding to oust the royal family is one thing, unlawfully removing their power and disregarding the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by holding them against their will and without reasonable excuse. Since the existence of this government the nation has been in rapid decline, there has been countless unnecessary deaths, an economy in collapse and frankly we are concerned about the well being of civilians nation-wide.

In line with our relationship with the Kingdom of Norway you have the unconditional support of our government and consequently the Swedish Armed Forces that I sit at the head of. We are in a strong position in terms of being capable of short-notice deployment. With that being said the deployment of an aircraft carrier and amphibious assault ships is an expensive affair and I believe we should meet in person to better discuss deployment options.

Regards,
Peter Hultqvist
Secretary of Defence
Kingdom of Sweden

 

[Odinson]

Private

"Fucking Swedes," the Minister of Defense noted as he grabbed his coat and his briefcase containing important papers. "SARA!" he yelled from his office at his personal secretary who was just outside. A twenty-two year old recent graduate who had been hired on by the ministry only a month ago rushed inside his otherwise empty office. Once she was inside and saw that nothing was wrong, she sighed and said, "Minister, you do have an intercom to my desk, you know." He ignored her comment and checked his watch.

"I need a helicopter flight to Stockholm, it should be low detail. I don't want anyone knowing that I'm going," he said as he put on his coat. Sara left the room and went to her desk to start making a few calls for a security detail and a helicopter for the Minister to use.

In less than an hour after the Swedish Secretary of Defense sent his response to Norway, another secure message was sent back to the Swedish Defense Department, stating that the Norwegian Minister of Defense would be there in an hour, and to have some coffee ready for them to share. With how frugal the Swedes are, he quietly wondered to himself if he'd have to pay for his own cup.
@Connor

 

[Odinson]

@Connor

 

[Connor]

Peter leans back in his brown leather officer chair, swinging slightly on the piston and groaning at the Norwegian response "have some coffee ready they say... apparently I'm a fucking butler now" - despite being fortunate enough to have a small conference table in his office which is decorated in instant-coffee assortments and stocked with fresh milk by assistants within the Department of Defence, he stands and wonders over to the table. A cup, saucer and plate of biscuits are organised ontop of the table to accomodate for the Norwegian Minister.

A brief glance into each cup ensures they're clean before he mumbles "He's lucky I haven't spat in his cup..".

Assistants are aware of the Norwegian arrival and instructed to bring him directly to the Secretary's office via private corridors inaccessible to the general public or members of staff with lower security clearance.

 

[Odinson]

Private

Despite the exceptionally strong relationship between the Kingdoms of Norway and Sweden, it was perhaps the worst-kept secret in both countries governments that the Ministers of Defense, for some reason, did not exactly get along and, on occasion, would make their counterpart do something slightly annoying to accommodate the other. In fact, every time something unfortunate happened to Kristoffer, he would quietly curse the name of Hultqvist. For example, that morning, a bird had somehow managed to shit on the windshield of his car even though he was parked in a parking garage. "Hultqvist," he muttered to himself in disgust.

"He doesn't want anyone to see me coming through the front door," Kristoffer muttered to his secretary who frowned and nudged him.
"Minister hush..." she said, starting to blush from embarrassment as they continued down the corridors of the building.

They finally made it to the Swedish Secretary of Defense's office. Once allowed inside, he offered his hand to Hultqvist and simply said, "Hallo," as the door was closed behind them, making it a private meeting. "Let me use your carriers, please."
@Connor

 

[Connor]

Prior to the Minister reaching the office, the aide to Secretary Hultvist would rush to his side and utter the dreaded words into his ear "Secretary Hultqvist, Minister Solberg has arrived and is on his way up" - she finished the sentence with a beaming smile on her face, fairly new to her position and unaware of the feud between the two senior cabinet members. She glances at the Secretary, expecting a positive response however he simply grunts as he stands from his chair and makes his way towards to two incredibly tall oak doors at the top of his office...

"Become my Secretary of Defence he said, meet worlds leaders he said... the only thing this guy is leading me to is bordem" he mumbles to himself prior to the Ministers arrival.

The second the doors fly open Peter drags a huge smile across his face and extends his hand "Minister Solberg, always an absolute pleasure to have you in Sweden! Did you e-..." fortunately he is interrupted with the Norwegians request, prompting him to change his response with a fair amount of pleasure, managing the avoid the forced pleasantries "why on Earth do you want my carriers?"

@Odinson

 

[Odinson]

Before the Minister could reply, there was a knock on the door from the outside. Minister Solberg watched as his aide came in, white-faced, with a piece of paper. She handed it to the Minister and then walked out of the room. He opened the hastily written note. It read, 30+ Russian aircraft heading to Oslo. Prime Minister: Norway under attack. The Minister's minor contempt for being in the same company as the Swedish Secretary of Defense quickly vanished. He handed the piece of paper to him and shook his head, "I'm sorry, I need to go back," he said. With that, Minister Solberg left and flew back to a Norwegian Air Force Station to assist in whatever defense of the country was needed.
@Connor

 

[Connor]

Secretary Hultqvist stares blankly at the piece of paper. before breathing a sigh of relief "I fucking despise that man" - he throws the paper to the conference table and walks out his officer, with the view to find some sort of coffee shop where he could recover from the trauma of meeting with Minister Solberg. Their 'friendship' between one another becoming quite a staple in Norwegian-Swedish politics.