Prince Ricardo De La Cerda
Crown Princess Victoria has called her military training “more relevant than ever” in a new interview.
The future queen of Sweden was joined by Anders Pihlblad, a journalist with TV4’s Nyhetsmorgon programme, during an exercise with the Stockholm Amphibious Regiment to discuss her ongoing training and what her next steps will be.
Crown Princess Victoria said that she’d always wanted to do military training, but “the prevailing situation in the world is a part, but also our membership in NATO, which has caused the armed forces to undergo major changes.”
The royal represented Sweden in March at the official NATO ceremony in Brussels that made the Scandinavian country a part of the nearly 75-year-old geopolitical organisation.
In August, the Swedish Royal Court announced that she would begin special officer training to “further deepen her commitment within the Armed Forces and to be given a deeper understanding of tactics, military science and military strategy.”
To Pihlblad, Crown Princess Victoria quipped that one major surprise at the start of her training had been “the amount of books you have to plow through.”
She added: “It has been a lot of fun. The education that I attend is otherwise very theoretical and academic. So to get out and do some practical moments like today, it’s actually a lot of fun. And also get to apply a little of what you have learned before.”
The royal, who currently holds the rank of cadet, said that the training has deepened her appreciation for the Swedish Armed Forces. “For me it feels important to keep up with and understand the complexity and scope of the change.”