The State Secretary for Foreign Affairs [a] (Swedish : Kabinettssekreterare) is the highest position below the rank of cabinet minister at the Swedish Ministry for Foreign Affairs. As of 2024 [update] , Dag Hartelius is state secretary for foreign affairs.
For historical reasons, this position has a different title in Swedish than the other state secretaries of the Swedish government; the other posts are termed statssekreterare.
Before 1945, in a situation where the political head of the ministry often changed rapidly, the Secretary General represented the continuous lines in Sweden's foreign policy; and was considered a prestigious step in the diplomatic career.
From 1932, Sweden has experienced a great deal of stability on the post of foreign minister, and from 1945 and on the post as state secretary for foreign affairs has increasingly been politized and a subject of replacement in connection with shifts of foreign minister. The precise role of the state secretary for foreign affairs has changed from cabinet to cabinet, particularly due to different prime ministers' particular interest and involvement in the shaping of foreign policy.
Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl Hammarskjöld was a Swedish economist and diplomat who served as the second Secretary-General of the United Nations from April 1953 until his death in a plane crash in September 1961. As of 2025, he remains the youngest person to have held the post, having been only 47 years old when he was appointed. He was a son of Hjalmar Hammarskjöld, who served as Prime Minister of Sweden from 1914 to 1917.
Carl Sverker Åström was a Swedish diplomat. After completing his studies, Åström began his career as an attaché at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in Stockholm. He served in the Soviet Union during World War II and later held posts in Washington, D.C., and London, rising to key leadership roles at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs. From 1964 to 1970, he served as Sweden's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, followed by leading Sweden's EEC treaty negotiations. He later became State Secretary for Foreign Affairs and ambassador to France before retiring in 1982.
Count Wilhelm Hans Fredrik Wachtmeister was a Swedish career diplomat who served as the Swedish Ambassador to the United States for 15 years from 1974 to 1989, eventually becoming the Dean of the Diplomatic Corps in 1986, as the longest-serving ambassador in the diplomatic corps in Washington, DC.
The Minister for Defence of Sweden is a member of the Government of Sweden. The Minister heads the Ministry for Defence and is appointed and dismissed at the sole discretion of the prime minister of Sweden.
The wedding of Victoria, Crown Princess of Sweden, and Daniel Westling took place on 19 June 2010 in Stockholm Cathedral. It had been described as "Europe's biggest royal wedding since the Prince of Wales married Lady Diana Spencer in 1981". Westling thereby acquired Victoria's ducal title, becoming a Swedish prince and Duke of Västergötland. In time for the wedding, a joint monogram of their initials was created.
General, Count Carl August Ehrensvärd was a Swedish Army officer. Ehrensvärd came from a distinguished family with a military background. His father was Admiral, Count Carl August Ehrensvärd, and his great-grandfather was the renowned fortress builder Augustin Ehrensvärd.
Frank Kurt Claude Belfrage is a Swedish economist and diplomat who was State Secretary for Foreign Affairs between 2006 and 2014, heading the Ministry for Foreign Affairs under then Minister for Foreign Affairs Carl Bildt. He was previously Ambassador of Sweden to the European Union from 1994 to 1999 and Ambassador of Sweden to France from 2001 to 2006.
Carl Herman Theodor "Alfred" Lagerheim was a Swedish politician and diplomat. Lagerheim was born in Copenhagen, Denmark and was a student in Uppsala in 1859 and graduated in 1861. He became an attaché in Paris in 1862, second secretary at the Foreign Ministry in 1865, legation secretary in Saint Petersburg in 1870 and head of the Foreign Ministry's political department in 1871. He was the Minister for Foreign Affairs between 1899 and 1904.
Ministry for Naval Affairs, established in 1840, was at the time one of the eight ministries, in which the Swedish government administration was divided into. The Ministry for Naval Affairs was established in connection with the ministry reform in 1840. Land defence and naval defence affairs, which had previously been dealt with in the War Office (Krigsexpeditionen), was now divided into two different ministries. The two ministries was in 1920 merge into the newly established Ministry of Defence.
The Coastal Fleet was until 1994 a Swedish Navy authority with the main task of training the naval ships commanders and crews. After the formation of the authority Swedish Armed Forces in 1994, the Coastal Fleet remained as a unit until 2000.
The Wachtmeister family is a Swedish noble family from Livonia, who immigrated to Sweden in the 16th century. The name Wachtmeister is German for 'sergeant'.
August Gyldenstolpe is a Swedish politician and diplomat who from 22 December 1904 until 2 August 1905 served as Minister of Foreign Affairs of Sweden.
Baron Johan Hugo Beck-Friis, was a Swedish diplomat. Beck-Friis had a long career in Swedish diplomacy. He began as an attaché in Paris in 1912, later serving in Hamburg, Berlin, and Bern before advancing to legation secretary in various cities, including Paris and Bucharest. His career progressed with appointments in Washington, D.C., and as Consul General in Shanghai. During World War II, he served as envoy to Oslo, where he remained until the German occupation, and later represented Sweden to the Norwegian government-in-exile in London. In 1947, he became Sweden's first modern ambassador when the Swedish legation in Oslo was elevated to embassy status. He later served as envoy and ambassador to Rome before retiring in 1956. In 1959, as Dag Hammarskjöld's personal representative, he successfully mediated the resumption of diplomatic relations between Thailand and Cambodia. Beck-Friis also held numerous honorary positions, including chairman of several Swedish organizations, Grand Master of the Great Order of the Amaranth, and Chamberlain.
Leif Leifland was a Swedish diplomat who served as State Secretary for Foreign Affairs from 1977 to 1982 and as Ambassador of Sweden to the United Kingdom from 1982 to 1991. Leifland joined the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in 1951 and began his diplomatic career in 1952 as an attaché in Casablanca. He went on to serve in various roles, including attaché in Athens, Bonn, and as Second Secretary in Stockholm, and worked as Assistant Secretary of the Committee on Foreign Affairs from 1958 to 1970.