First, who is Wang Yi?
He is close to Chinese President Xi Jinping and has his trust. Previously, the post of foreign minister did not carry such great weight in China, but Wang Yi is a member of the Communist Party's Politburo, and so the post has also become more important.
Wang Yi started his Nordic tour by visiting Denmark and will move on to Finland and Norway after Sweden. Why is he making this trip at this time?
China's relationship with the EU is at a rather delicate stage as the EU considers further measures to counter what it sees as subsidised Chinese exports. There is a real possibility that it could develop into a trade war, which China absolutely does not want. So they simply want to convince the EU, and also individual member states, in various ways, that this is not the right way to go.
Another background is that the Nordic countries are advanced economies, which China is interested in cooperating with.
Does it matter that Sweden and the Nordic countries are known advocates of free trade?
Absolutely, China hopes that countries that are traditionally sceptical of measures that smack of protectionism will use their influence within the EU to prevent this from happening. But Sweden has also become more accepting of meeting unfair competition from China with various measures.
Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard (M) has promised criticism for China enabling Russia's war against Ukraine. Is China receptive to such criticism?
I think China's leaders expect that there will be such criticism, but I don't think they are particularly concerned. They listen, but they don't care. By now China is very used to hearing that criticism, because European leaders have said it on hundreds of occasions since the war began.
Malmer Stenergard will also address the case of Gui Minhai, a Swedish publisher who has been imprisoned for more than ten years. Is China listening to such arguments?
It is impossible to know from the outside whether there are any conditions for his release. Sweden has raised this issue repeatedly and it does not seem to have gained any importance, but it is still important to raise it. He is a Swedish citizen, even if China has a different opinion, so it is a fundamental issue for every Swedish government to work towards a solution.
