Sweden will host NATO's next meeting of alliance foreign ministers. The meeting will be held in Helsingborg (southern Sweden, at the entrance to the Baltic Sea) on 21–22 May 2026, and both Sweden's Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte have commented on the upcoming meeting.
– Helsingborg lies at the heart of one of NATO's most strategically important areas, at the entrance to the Baltic Sea. This is a key area for Sweden's role in the defence alliance, says Sweden's Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard in a video message published on social media.
In a press release, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte welcomes the meeting being held in Sweden and comments on the country's role in regional security.
– I am pleased that ministers are meeting in Sweden, a highly valued ally that makes many important contributions to Euro-Atlantic security, says Rutte in the press release.
It is the first time Sweden has hosted a NATO meeting at foreign minister level since the country joined the alliance in March 2024, and the meeting is described as an important step ahead of NATO's upcoming summit.
The summit will be held in Ankara (Turkey) in July, where heads of state and government of member countries will convene.