Is the development moving towards more, smaller operations, in terms of number of personnel?

"1' d say that it goes in cycles. Today, as in the year 2000, we are involved in many op­erations to which we send experts or small teams. In 200I, however, the global pic­ture changed after the attack on the World Trade Center in New York. We also carried out major operations after the tsunami in 2004, and in transporting Swedish residents home from Lebanon in 2006. It's impossible to predict what's going to happen."

The SRSA has been able to use Swedish mili­tary surplus equipment in many operations. But how long will that last?

"We have had a favourable position in the sense that we have been able to take over surplus equipment from the Swed­ish armed forces at a low price or free of charge, and we have been able to carry out a multitude of good operations as a result. However, there is not very much left that is in a usable state. By the year 20n we should have a new system in place, by which we purchase the items we need instead."

What is the role of the SRSA as regards gen­der issues?

"We have set up a goal that at least 40 percent of our personnel in the field should be women. At the moment that figure is at 20 percent, but it's important to remember that when we started working with gender issues, it was only 4 percent, and almost all the women were nurses."

"Gender issues are crucial to the qual­ity of our operations. You can't save the population of a country if you exclude the women. And in Iran, for example, it may be extremely dangerous for a woman to have direct contact with a foreign man. There is no way to come into contact with women unless you yourself are female. The internal atmosphere is also better when there is a more even gender balance."

"We also plan to continue to carry out preventive work. Our Code of Conduct sup­ports this - it is signed by me and by all per­sonnel who go on an operation. It states that no sexual relations may take place during operations. We have this approach because we are aware that people in poor countries may be in a position of dependence on us."

The SRSA also plans to develop its work on other diversity issues, such as disability and ethnicity. How will that work take shape?

"This too is all about the quality of our operations. We want to ensure that what we do really works in the cultural context in which we find ourselves, and that it helps the people who need help. So we can't send out someone who is good at mending cars or electric wiring if they can't handle cul­tural differences in a sensible way. In terms of disabilities, there is often a focus on peo­ple with sight or mobility-related disabili­ties, but I would like to raise awareness of the situation for people with mental health problems, as they are often regarded as pa­riahs among pariahs.

What is your view of safety for UN person­nel following the bomb in Baghdad in 2003, where it became clear that the UN flag is no guarantee for safety?

"The SRSA had established a base camp inside the UN compound in Canal Hotel in Baghdad, where the UN had its headquar­ters. A truck loaded with explosives drove into the building. Around 50 UN workers were killed and many were injured. The SRSA team used its base camp to gather and care for the wounded. The result of the attack was that the UN withdrew from Iraq, and we did the same."

"Personally, I don't see the bomb in Bagh­dad as a major eye-opener. Our operations in Bosnia were carried out in circumstances that were at least as dangerous as those in Iraq. These days, we would not allow our personnel to be exposed to the kind of risks the," faced in Bosnia. We have more stringent requirements now, so I suppose we have gone through a learning process after all. But many of our operations are danger­ous nonetheless, in situations plagued by a seemingly inexhaustible supply of weapons, conflict, bandits and drugs - factors that we cannot influence."