Sweden's armed forces said six of the country's JAS 39 Gripen fighter aircraft landed at an air base in Malbork, Poland, on Wednesday to join an alliance airspace surveillance mission. Both Sweden and Finland built their militaries with a threat from Russia in mind, and the Gripen was one such project.
The jets, made by the Swedish aerospace and defense company Saab AB, were specifically built to counter Russia. The commander of Sweden's air force at the time, Mats Helgesson, said in 2019 that the Gripen was "designed to kill Sukhois," a type of Russian jet.