China and the US wanted Sweden to host their next round of trade talks – why?

Chinese and American negotiators will gather in Stockholm for a much-anticipated third round of trade talks on Monday, putting the Swedish capital in the spotlight and prompting questions as to why the Scandinavian country was the venue of choice for the world’s two biggest economies.

It began at a meeting of finance chiefs from the Group of 20 countries in South Africa earlier this month, where Sweden had been invited for the first time. Both China and the US approached the delegation from Stockholm about holding the talks in the capital, said Swedish Finance Minister Elisabeth Svantesson in a July 22 social media post.

“That the world’s largest economies turn to us shows that Sweden enjoys great international trust – and that we play an important role in fostering dialogue and cooperation.”

Hosting US-China trade negotiations in third countries is a marked change from the dialogues that put a temporary freeze on the bilateral trade war during the first term of US President Donald Trump.

Those talks were principally held in Washington, with then-Vice-Premier Liu He making regular visits to the White House.

Now, neutral territory has been selected in Europe – Geneva in May, London in June and Stockholm for the coming negotiations – suggesting a more level playing field between the two economies, according to Niklas Swanstrom, director of the Institute for Security and Development Policy in Stockholm.

South China Morning Post