Sweden’s spy agency investigates drones over 3 nuclear power plants
Sweden’s domestic security authority says it has taken over the preliminary investigation into drones that were seen last week hovering over the country’s three nuclear power plants
COPENHAGEN, Denmark – Sweden’s domestic security agency said on Monday that they have taken over the preliminary investigation of drones that last week were seen hovering over or near the country’s three nuclear power plants.
First, the police said that there had been drones over two nuclear power plants – Forsmark, north of Stockholm, and Oscarshamn in the southeast. The intelligence service, known by its Swedish abbreviation SAPO, said that a drone was also reported over a third nuclear power plant, Ringhals, which is the largest of them and is located on the country’s west coast.
The police have no suspects.
“With regard to the cases of drone overflights at three nuclear power plants, the assessment is made that they are of such a nature that preliminary investigations have been taken over from the police authority in order to be able to investigate the incidents in more detail. “, SAPO said in a statement.
Late on Friday, the police were alerted about the drones but lost control of the unmanned aircraft. Swedish media said that the drones were large enough to withstand the wind that blew over the area.
Hans Liwang, associate professor at the Swedish National Defense College, tells SVT that Sweden is not sufficiently prepared for this type of event.
“We have not really adapted our way of looking at this type of event to today’s reality,” he said. “We still see the world as either at peace or at war.”
In 2019, the Ringhals 2 reactor in southwest Sweden was permanently closed with operators, citing lack of profitability and rising maintenance costs.
In addition, there are two decommissioned nuclear power plants in Sweden – Barseback, which is located on the narrow waterway between Sweden and Denmark, and Agesta, south of the Swedish capital Stockholm.