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A Swedish government official left behind a folder containing classified documents at Stockholm's Arlanda Airport following Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson's November 2022 trip to Türkiye to discuss Sweden's NATO membership bid, according to Swedish newspaper Dagens Nyheter.
The security incident occurred just weeks after Kristersson took office and during highly secretive negotiations aimed at securing Türkiye's approval for Sweden's NATO application. The documents, which related to discussions with Türkiye, were discovered by a cleaning worker at the airport terminal and temporarily fell into unauthorized hands.
The folder was reportedly found in a restroom at the airport terminal. According to DN's sources, the employee who lost the folder reported the incident to the Government Offices' security department. The mistake occurred after staff traveling on the government plane were prohibited from taking taxis home and instead were driven by airport personnel to the main terminal, where they had to use public transportation.
Sweden's Government Offices confirmed the incident in a statement to DN, saying, "It is correct that an employee in the Government Offices forgot a folder at Arlanda after the prime minister's trip to Türkiye, and that it was found by airport personnel."
However, officials downplayed the severity of the breach, stating that "the assessment was that the folder did not contain security-classified information. Therefore, no damage assessment was conducted and the incident was not reported to the Security Police."
The distinction is significant in Swedish law. Security classification applies to information that could harm Sweden's security if disclosed, while the broader concept of secrecy is regulated under Sweden's Public Access to Information and Secrecy Act.
According to DN's sources, parts of the folder's contents were covered by foreign affairs secrecy, which protects information that could damage Sweden's relations with other states.
The lost documents were described as a copy of the prime minister's briefing folder, which typically contains background reports and talking points for official trips. Multiple staff members usually carry identical copies of such materials during government travel. The employee reportedly attributed the error to the pressured nature of the trip and intensive working days.
The incident adds to a series of security breaches that have plagued Sweden's government during its NATO accession process. Days after Kristersson's Türkiye visit, Henrik Landerholm, the prime minister's childhood friend, was appointed as the new national security advisor.
Landerholm himself caused three security incidents during his first six months in the role, including leaving a mobile phone at the Hungarian embassy and a notebook at Swedish Radio. He is currently on trial for negligence with classified information after leaving documents at the Gallofsta conference center in March 2023.
Türkiye ultimately delayed ratifying Sweden's NATO membership bid for over a year after the November 2022 meetings.
The work surrounding Sweden's NATO accession was surrounded by very high secrecy at the time, with only a narrow circle having insight into the discussions. The exact issues discussed with Türkiye during this sensitive period were not publicly communicated.
Türkiye eventually approved Sweden's NATO membership bid in 2024, completing Sweden's path to joining the Atlantic alliance.
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