Östen Undén

Bo Östen Undén (25 August 1886 – 14 January 1974) was a Swedish statesman, academic, and diplomat who served as Minister for Foreign Affairs from 1924 to 1926 and again from 1945 to 1962. He briefly acted as Prime Minister of Sweden following the death of Per Albin Hansson in October 1946. A member of the Social Democratic Party (SAP), Undén represented Värmland in the Riksdag from 1934 to 1965.^[1][2]

In 1917, he was appointed professor and head of the department of civil law at Uppsala University, but he came to divide his career between politics and academia, which prompted his resignation from the position as rector magnificus (1929–1932) of that university. He served as the Swedish Foreign Ministry's expert on international law, Minister for Foreign Affairs (1924–1926, 1945–1962),^[3] minister without portfolio (1917–1920, 1932–1936), the government's chancellor for universities from 1937 to 1951, and chaired the Riksdag's committee on foreign relations during World War II.^[4]

At the same time, Undén may be acknowledged as a chief representative for Sweden's covert Cold War adaptation to the United States, as in his view, the Swedish governmental agencies, including the Defence Forces, were free to conclude any agreements with foreign powers and agencies that did not literally contradict international treaties Sweden was a party of, as long as he and his ministry were not formally involved. As an effect, the Swedish government could, before the founding of NATO, agree to build air bases in eastern Scandinavia suitable for bombing missions against Leningrad. A similar adaptation included integration in the U.S. embargo policy from the Korean War.^[5]

In the years 1930 to 1933, as a League of Nations arbiter, Undén ruled in favour of Bulgaria in a dispute with Greece regarding the ownership of 19 forests in the Dospat region of southwestern Bulgaria. In 1936, the summit of Dikchan (1,966 m (6,450 ft)) in the surrounding Rhodope Mountains was named "Unden Peak" or "Professor Unden Peak" after the Undén for his efforts. A bronze memorial plate featuring the Bulgarian and Swedish coats of arms as well as an inscription regarding the name's origin were placed on top of the peak.^[6]

In 1961, his "Undén Proposal" argued that states without nuclear weapons should declare that they refused to produce such weapons and refuse to receive and store such weapons. Undén's proposal was accepted by the United Nations General Assembly as a UN resolution with 58 votes in favour (Scandinavia, Warsaw pact, third world countries), 10 votes against (NATO members) and 23 votes of abstention (Latin America, former French colonies in Africa).^[7]

Undén was widely respected in politics, particularly within the Social Democratic Party, but was never uncontroversial. Ideologically, he belonged with the left-wing faction of the party, and has in retrospect been criticized for his optimistic view of the Soviet Union, which remained for the entirety of his time as Foreign Minister.^[8]

As of 2025, Undén’s time as foreign minister, a total of 18 years, 9 months, and 15 days spread out in two non-consecutive terms across an almost 40-year period set between 1924 and 1962, remains the longest in Swedish history.^[9][10]