In his Christmas message to the nation, King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden highlighted the government’s In Case of Crisis or War leaflet, which provides Swedes with preparedness advice for, yes, crises and war. Twenty years ago, the monarch delivered another unifying message after an unfathomable crisis had already hit the country. Though Carl Gustaf’s messages concern Sweden, they highlight a crucial reality: national disasters (and they’re likely to hit with increasing frequency) deserve unity, not politicisation.

Like Elizabeth II and now Charles III, each year Carl XVI Gustaf delivers a Christmas message to the nation (and, as the king adds each year, to Swedes abroad). This year, he spoke about obvious issues, such as the war in Ukraine and Sweden’s accession to NATO – but also about the new edition of the If Crisis or War Comes leaflet (now renamed In Case of Crisis or War), which has just been sent out to every household in the country. ‘If we prepare ourselves, fear decreases and we feel safer,’ the king noted. The monarch has already done his part: a few months ago, he and Queen Silvia invited the director-general of the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (MSB), which publishes the leaflet, to the palace for the purpose of preparedness instruction. The director-general brought with her not just the leaflet but a preparedness kit, too.

The MSB first resurrected If Crisis or War Comes, which had been dormant since the end of the Cold War, in 2018. Back then, quite a few people outside the country thought the leaflet was over the top. Preparing for power cuts, crippling epidemics and even war was paranoid and would needlessly frighten people, it was argued. That naiveté has long since dissipated. And as Carl Gustaf has demonstrated, in his Christmas message and elsewhere, preparing for the disasters increasingly likely to hit countries is simply the right thing to do. It’s not about politics but about keeping a country going.

That’s also what Carl Gustaf did 20 years ago. On Boxing Day 2004, a devastating tsunami hit Indonesia, Thailand, India, Sri Lanka and other south-east Asian countries – including in tourist hotspots. Some 228,000 people lost their lives, among them 543 Swedes. Even though the enormous devastation and loss of life quickly became clear, Sweden’s top politicians and civil servants were missing in action. The foreign minister, who was absent on the crucial day, later declared that she deserved some time with her family. The prime minister thought the foreign ministry had things under control. Top civil servants similarly thought someone else was in charge. The few doctors, nurses and diplomats who tried to take action were rebuffed by their superiors. The nation, already shocked by the devastation and heartbroken by the loss of so many Swedish lives, grew aghast at what seemed like officialdom’s indifference.

And into the fray stepped the king. ‘Imagine if I, like the king in the fairy tales, could put everything right and finish the story with “and they lived happily ever after”. But just like you, I’m just a grieving fellow human being,’ he said in an address that encapsulated the nation’s anguish. The bungling politicians and top officials, who had spent the days after their disastrous performance trying to explain it away, looked infantile. ‘Let’s all help each other,’ the king said in his address. ‘We adults want to listen to you who are children and young people, to your stories about what you have experienced and felt. Show us your drawings, your tears, sadness and fury. We adults are here to protect and help you. But you can also help us adults. You do it by being with us. In the face of the incomprehensible, we adults are also like children, who have no answer to why things happen that we do not want to happen.’

Twenty years later, Sweden has ministers, departments and agencies that are better set up for disasters. Indeed, the current government has made restoring Sweden’s preparedness to something close to its Cold War standards a pillar of its defence policy. (It even has a minister of civil defence.) But it also knows that disasters should not be a matter of party politics. That’s why Carl Gustaf could speak about preparedness in his Christmas address: he was not taking sides, merely making the sound observation that everyone can do their part for the country by knowing how to prepare for crises and how to react if and when they occur. Indeed, he explained that hiking in the mountains – as he has done for many years – has taught him to be prepared for sudden weather changes and to pack his rucksack accordingly.

Sudden geopolitical changes are upon us, and regardless of how much we like or dislike our fellow citizens, we’ll face the changes collectively. That’s why disaster preparedness must be a joint and national undertaking. Let’s hope other countries find suitable representatives to deliver the same message.