China Courts Nordic Countries as Trade Frictions With the EU Mount

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi wrapped up a rare tour of four Nordic countries, part of Beijing’s effort to ease rising trade tensions with Europe and stabilize ties strained by the war in Ukraine.

The July 2-7 trip to Denmark, Sweden, Finland and Norway marked China’s highest-level diplomatic engagement with the region in more than a decade. It underscored Beijing’s urgency to prevent a broader shift in economic ties as the European Union weighs protective measures in response to a widening trade deficit with China.