The foreign policy of Sweden was formerly based on the premise that national security is best served by staying free of alliances in peacetime in order to remain a neutral country in the event of war,with this policy lasting from 1814 in the context of the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars until the 2022 Russian Invasion of Ukraine. In 2002,Sweden revised its security doctrine. The security doctrine at that point still stated that "Sweden pursues a policy of non-participation in military alliances," but permitted cooperation in response to threats against peace and security. The government also seeks to maintain Sweden's high standard of living. These two objectives required heavy expenditures for social welfare,defence spending at rates considered low by Western European standards,and close attention to foreign trade opportunities and world economic cooperation. In 2024,Sweden formally became part of a military alliance for the first time since the end of the War of the Sixth Coalition by joining NATO.
The politics of Sweden take place in a framework of a parliamentary representative democratic constitutional monarchy. Executive power is exercised by the government,led by the Prime Minister. Legislative power is vested in both the government and parliament,elected within a multi-party system. The judiciary is independent,appointed by the government and employed until retirement. Sweden is formally a monarchy with a monarch holding symbolic power.
Finland and Sweden share a long history,similar legal systems,and an economic and social model. Finland was part of Sweden for almost 700 years from around 1150 until the Finnish War of 1809 after which Finland became an autonomous part of the Russian Empire as the Grand Duchy of Finland. Since Finland gained its full independence from Russia in 1917,Finland and Sweden have been close partners,enjoying a special relationship. The number of Finnish-Swedish connections and the quality of cooperation in most areas of the government is unique when compared to other international relations involving both countries. The Swedish language has an official status in Finland,whilst Finns form the largest ethnic minority in Sweden,estimated to be about 675,000.
Tobias Lennart Billström is a Swedish former politician of the Moderate Party. He served as Minister for Migration and Asylum Policy from 2006 to 2014,briefly as Minister for Employment in 2010 and as Minister for Foreign Affairs from 2022 to 2024.
Swedish–Turkish relations are foreign relations between Sweden and Turkey. Both countries are full members of the Council of Europe,NATO,the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD),the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) and the Union for the Mediterranean.
Finland–Turkey relations are foreign relations between Finland and Turkey. Finland has an embassy in Ankara and an honorary consulate general in Istanbul. Turkey has an embassy in Helsinki. Both countries are full members of the Council of Europe,the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD),the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE),North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO),and the Union for the Mediterranean. Also Finland is an EU member and Turkey is an EU candidate. Turkey did not support Finland's accession to NATO until March 2023,but accepted its participation.
Ann Christin Linde is a Swedish politician of the Social Democratic Party who served as Minister for Foreign Affairs in the government of Prime Minister Stefan Löfven and Magdalena Andersson from 2019 to 2022.
Finland has been a member of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) since 4 April 2023.
General Leif Michael Claesson is a Swedish Army officer. He currently serves as the Chief of Defence since 1 October 2024. Claesson began his military career in 1984 as a tank commander. He advanced through various positions,including instructor and company commander,while completing education at military institutions in Sweden and Germany. By 2001,he became a lieutenant colonel,serving in both national and international roles,including as a military adviser and representative to NATO and the EU. Promoted to brigadier general in 2013,Claesson held key leadership roles,such as commanding the Swedish ISAF contingent in Afghanistan and overseeing Nordic Battlegroup training. In 2018,he became a major general and Chief of Policy and Plans Department,later serving as Chief of Joint Operations and Commandant General in Stockholm in 2020. Promoted to lieutenant general,he became Chief of the Defence Staff in 2023. Finally,in 2024,he was appointed general and Chief of Defence,assuming the role on 1 October 2024.
The Swedish Embassy in Pyongyang is Sweden's diplomatic mission in North Korea,which is located in the country's capital Pyongyang. The Swedish Embassy was one of the first embassies in North Korea,opening in 1975. The ambassador since July 2021 is Andreas Bengtsson. Until 2001,Sweden was the only Western country with uninterrupted diplomatic representation in the city. The Swedish embassy serves as the protecting power for the United States and as consular representation for Australia,Canada,Italy,Latvia,Iceland and Finland.
Annika Hahn-Englund,,is a Swedish diplomat. In 2022 she was appointed Swedish ambassador to Nigeria and West Africa. She also served as ambassador of Nordic Cooperation at the Swedish ministry of foreign affairs,and also an ambassador to Belgium and Luxembourg.
Nils Krister Bringéus is a Swedish diplomat. He served as a member of diplomatic staff and as Ambassador of Sweden to Serbia and to Norway from the 1970s and into the 2020s.
Klaus Korhonen,is a Finnish diplomat.
Veronika Wand-Danielsson is a Swedish diplomat who has been the incumbent ambassador to Germany since 2023,France from 2014 to 2020,and NATO from 2007 to 2014. She became the first female ambassador of Sweden to France and Monaco in 2014.
John Peter Ericson,born 11 September,1964 in Gothenburg,Sweden,is a Swedish diplomat,and currently the Swedish ambassador to Finland.
