Chinese Embassy in Sweden’s Chargé d’Affaires ad interim pens an article to promote China’s economy

On February 13, 2026, Wan Degang (萬德剛), the acting head of the Chinese mission in Sweden in the absence of a formal ambassador, published a signed article in the Swedish outlet Nya Dagbladet arguing that China’s economic rise benefits the global economy while criticizing US tariff policies for disrupting world trade. The article, titled “China’s Prosperous Development Injects Powerful Momentum into Global Economic Growth,” said that China’s GDP growth would reach 5 percent and that its contribution to the global economy would reach 30 percent. The article also referenced the December 18, 2025, launch of island-wide customs operations at the Hainan Free Trade Port (海南自由貿易港) as evidence of China’s opening up. He noted that Sweden was the first country to establish diplomatic relations with China. More precisely, Sweden was the first Western country to do so, on May 9, 1950, and the two nations have served as each other’s largest trading partners in Asia and Northern Europe respectively.