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Swedish King visits Warsaw for talks on security and trade

10.03.2026 14:45
Sweden's King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia have begun an official state visit to Poland, meeting President Karol Nawrocki and First Lady Marta Nawrocka at the Presidential Palace in Warsaw.
Polish President Karol Nawrocki (right) and Swedish King Carl XVI Gustaf (left) speak to the press at the Presidential Palace in Warsaw, 10 March 2026.
Polish President Karol Nawrocki (right) and Swedish King Carl XVI Gustaf (left) speak to the press at the Presidential Palace in Warsaw, 10 March 2026.Photo: PAP/Paweł Supernak

Both sides highlighted the strength of bilateral ties.

President Nawrocki noted that 700 Swedish companies operate in Poland and that bilateral trade reached EUR 14.5 billion in 2024, growing year on year.

Around 100,000 Poles work in Sweden, while a growing number of Polish firms are also investing there.

"This shows what great technological and economic potential exists between our two countries," Nawrocki said, pointing out that Poland is the sixth-largest economy in the EU and has been invited to this year's G20 summit.

Security featured prominently in the talks.

King Carl XVI Gustaf said that deepening the Polish-Swedish friendship was "crucial to address the threats around us", stressing the need for cooperation within the EU, NATO and Baltic Sea formats.

He added that security would be a key theme throughout the visit, including discussions on closer military cooperation between the two countries' armed forces.

The royal couple is accompanied by a substantial government delegation, including ministers of defence, foreign affairs and culture.

They are joined by representatives of around 60 Swedish companies and research institutions.

President Nawrocki also invited Sweden to join the Bucharest Nine (B9) – a grouping of Central and Eastern European NATO states focused on strengthening the alliance's eastern flank.

A formal invitation is expected at the B9 summit in May.

This is the Swedish royal couple's third visit to Poland, following trips in 1993 and 2011.

The three-day programme includes a visit to the Polish parliament, a civil defence forum and a Polish-Swedish innovation conference at the Copernicus Science Centre.

The royal couple will also tour the Warsaw Museum, where discussions are planned on shared cultural heritage, including items looted during the seventeenth-century Swedish invasion of Poland known as the Deluge.

On the final day, the couple travels to Gdańsk, northern Poland, where they will visit the European Solidarity Centre and the Museum of the Second World War.

In Gdynia, Sweden's Defence Minister Pål Jonson will hold talks with his Polish counterpart Władysław Kosiniak-Kamysz, focused on the Orka programme – Poland's procurement of three Swedish A26 submarines.

A vessel from Sweden's navy is also expected to make an appearance at the port.

(ał)

Source: PAP