The first contact between Greece and Sweden can be traced back to the 11th century. Both countries established diplomatic relations in 1852. Both countries are members of the Council of Europe, of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe, and of the European Union. Greece is a full member of NATO. Sweden is not a full member. Greece has given full support to Sweden's membership of the European Union. Greece supports Sweden's NATO membership.
History
Diplomatic relations between Sweden and Greece were established in 1833, a few years after the Greek War of Independence. The first trade agreement between Sweden and Greece was signed in 1852.
In September 1934, the Crown Prince Gustaf Adolf and Crown Princess Margaret and Princess Ingrid visited Greece with the Svenska Orient Linien's motor ship Vasaland. They stopped at Patras, visited the paper mill in Aegion. On 20 September, they arrived in Piraeus, where they traveled by train to Athens, where they were received by president Alexandros Zaimis and representatives of government agencies. They also visited Delphi, Nafplio and Delos with the cruiser Hellas. On 28 September, Vasaland departed for Thessaloniki and then on to Istanbul on 2 October.
The Swedish Institute at Athens (SIA) was founded in 1946 with archeology as its main purpose. A double taxation agreement was signed in 1963.
In 1967, Sweden and three other countries brought the Greek Case against the Greek junta regime for human rights violations. Stockholm was since 1968 the base of the Panhellenic Liberation Movement resistance organization.
Since 1991, there has been a Swedish-Greek Chamber of Commerce in Athens. Business Sweden monitors Greece from Milan. There are about 40 Swedish-affiliated companies operating in Greece - most in the Athens area. In September 2022, Greece fully approved Sweden's application for NATO membership.
List of bilateral treaties and agreements
Treaty on Trade and Shipping (1852) Agreements or Memoranda have been signed since 1929 Avoidance of Double Taxation of Income or capital (1961) Social Security (1984) Defense Cooperation (1999)
List of recent bilateral visits
To Sweden
27 June 2006: Prime Minister of Greece Kostas Karamanlis visited Stockholm
20–22 May 2008: state visit of President of Greece Karolos Papoulias
2009: Prime Minister of Greece Kostas Karamanlis and Minister for Foreign Affairs Dora Bakoyannis on an official visit to Sweden August 2011: Minister for Foreign Affairs Stavros Lambrinidis visited Stockholm April 2012: Minister of Health and Social Solidarity Andreas Loverdos visited Stockholm April 2013: Minister of Tourism Olga Kefalogianni visited Stockholm February 2016: Minister for European Affairs Nikos Xydakis visited Stockholm October 2016: Minister of International Economic Relations Dimitris Mardas visited Stockholm March 2017: Minister for European Affairs Georgios Katrougalos visited Stockholm October 2019: Minister for European Affairs Miltiadis Varvitsiotis visited Stockholm