Following the Cold War, Sweden adopted a doctrine promoting perpetual peace, resultingin significant reductions in military defense capabilities and the dismantling of civil defenseinfrastructure. However, geopolitical events such as the Russian invasion of Georgia in2008 and the annexation of Crimea in 2014 prompted Sweden to reassess its securityposture in 2015, leading to the reconstruction of total defense, and an emphasis oncollaboration between the civilian and military defense sectors. Exercises have beeninstrumental in fostering civil‐military collaboration capability. This study aims toinvestigate whether these exercises are effective in enhancing capability for civil‐military collaboration. Data collection involved participant observation during sevenexercises and was analyzed using constructive alignment (CA). Findings indicate that theexercises did not yield discernible learning outcomes, and this is attributed to the Swedishprinciples of responsibility, deficiencies in CA, contextual support, and entrencheddefensive routines.