Gunnar Gerring

Gunnar Gerring (25 October 1916 – 16 April 2009) was a Swedish diplomat. Gerring had a long diplomatic career, beginning with postings in Hamburg, Moscow, and Budapest before becoming a second secretary at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in 1947. He held key roles in trade negotiations and UN delegations before serving in embassies across Washington, D.C., Ankara, Bern, and Bonn. He was later appointed ambassador to Sofia, Baghdad, Kuwait City, and Wellington, also overseeing relations with Fiji, Tonga, and Western Samoa. His career also included a leadership role in the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission in Korea and teaching at the Swedish National Defence College.

Early life Gerring was born on 25 October 1916 in Stockholm, Sweden, the son of lector, PhD Hugo Gerring and his wife Hillan (née Åström). He passed the studentexamen in 1934 and the reserve officers' exam in 1939 (serving as a lieutenant in the cavalry reserve from 1942 to 1953 ). In 1939, he earned a Candidate of Law degree from Uppsala University. Gerring completed his clerkship at Stockholm City Court from 1940 to 1942 before becoming an attaché at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in 1942.

Career Gerring served in Hamburg in 1942, Moscow in 1943, and Budapest in 1946 before becoming a second secretary at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in 1947. He then returned to the Ministry for Foreign Affairs in 1975 and was appointed ambassador to Wellington (also accredited to Fiji, Tonga, and Western Samoa) from 1979 to 1982. He was the father of Erik Gunnar (born 1952) and Carl Gustaf (born 1954). He was buried at Nacka Northern Cemetery.

Awards and decorations