Sweden is dispatching four water-bombing aircraft to France and Spain as wildfires raging across both countries force nearly 200,000 people from their homes. Two planes departed on Saturday morning for France, with two more to follow later in the week due to maintenance schedules, Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson announced via the EU civil protection mechanism.
The Mission is expected to last seven to eight days. France's President Emmanuel Macron has ordered military mobilisation to support civilian firefighting efforts. In Spain, two of three major blazes have merged outside Madrid, threatening Navas del Rey, in what regional president Isabel Díaz Ayuso called the worst wildfire in Madrid's history.
The EU has also sent four aircraft to Spain, sourced from Italy and Greece, while Croatia, Portugal, the Czech Republic, and Slovakia have provided additional aircraft and helicopters to France. Denmark was unable to assist, lacking the requested aerial firefighting modules.