Swedish Climate and Environment Minister Romina Pourmokhtari has made history by bringing her three-month-old son Adam to an EU Environment Council meeting in Luxembourg.
The 30-year-old Liberal Party minister arrived at the high-level climate negotiations with her baby in a sling, accompanied by an aide pushing a pram.
EU officials confirmed it was the first time to their knowledge that a minister had brought an infant to a formal Council meeting.
Pourmokhtari described the move as a deliberate signal that parents in public life should not have to choose between career and family.
“I’m happy to be an example of not having to choose between being a present minister and a present mother,” she told journalists.
She added that one of the things that makes Europe a good place to live is the possibility of combining high-level meetings with childcare responsibilities.
Pourmokhtari returned from parental leave only on June 15 after taking time off since early March.
Sweden has long prided itself on generous parental leave policies that encourage both mothers and fathers to share childcare.
The minister’s decision reflects a broader Swedish political culture where combining family life with high office is increasingly normalised, though it remains rare at the highest international levels.
Earlier, the US administration also had a lot of officials bringing their babies and young children along in what the press described as a White House baby boom.
🇪🇺 For the first time in EU history, a minister brought her baby to an official Council meeting
Sweden's Minister for Climate and the Environment, Romina Pourmokhtari, arrived at the EU Council meeting in Luxembourg with her young son.
"I want to show that you don't have to… pic.twitter.com/M40Y5WAOsC
— News.Az (@news_az) June 25, 2026
