Svensk generalmajor blir underrättelsechef i Nato

Major General Lena Maria Persson Herlitz née Persson (born 12 August 1967) is a Swedish Amphibious Corps officer. Persson Herlitz began her military career in 1991 with the Älvsborg Coastal Artillery Regiment. After officer training, she served in the 5th Amphibious Battalion, including a deployment to Bosnia and Herzegovina (1997–1998). She later worked as adjutant to the regimental commander and became a company commander after completing staff training. In 2006, she joined the Swedish Military Intelligence and Security Service (MUST), focusing on the Democratic Republic of the Congo and later Afghanistan, where she led the Swedish National Intelligence Cell in Kabul. She also served as aide-de-camp to Crown Princess Victoria and commanded the Swedish contingent in Kosovo in 2010. She held several leadership roles, including deputy chief of staff within the Maritime Component Command, and served as a UN military advisor in Afghanistan in 2012. In 2013, she became commander of SWEDINT, which under her leadership became the first NATO-certified training center of its kind. After serving as military adviser at the Ministry of Defence, she became head of Training at the Swedish Armed Forces Headquarters (2017), then Deputy Chief (2019) and later Chief (2020) of the Policy and Plans Department, being promoted to brigadier general and subsequently major general. She also served on the Defence Board. From June 2023 to April 2025, she headed the Swedish delegation to the Neutral Nations Supervisory Commission (NNSC) in Korea before being succeeded by Major General Fredrik Ståhlberg.