The purpose of this study is to analyze the Swedish Armed Forces' gender equality strategies during 2020-2026. The Swedish Armed Forces is considered a role model regarding gender equality within NATO and aims to promote both quantitative and qualitative equality within the organization. In order to understand the arguments employed within the strategies, this study analyzes the internal legitimation of gender equality strategies, using Van Leeuwen's theory of legitimation. A discourse analysis was conducted on two internal documents regardin gender mainstreaming and overall operational planning, one handbook on gender and one article posted in the Officers' Union newspaper. The results shows that arguments regarding operational effectiveness are primarly used, aiming to legitimate the strategies using rationalization. Other legitimation strategies - such as moral evaluation and authorization - are also used, mainly by referring to the Swedish Armed Forces' code of conduct, United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 as well as directives from the Swedish Goverment. Furthermore, the results indicate that the strategies lack clear guidelines for the regiments responsible for their implementation. Based on the results, it can be concluded that the gender equality strategies build on the rationale of operational effectiveness. However, their legitimacy might be undermined due to the lack of guidelines, consequently reducing their impact within the organization and upholding the very norms they aim to transform.