China ready to strengthen cooperation with Sweden: Wang Yi

China is ready to strengthen cooperation with Sweden to jointly safeguard the international system centered on the UN, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Saturday during a visit to Stockholm.

Wang met Swedish Foreign Minister Maria Malmer Stenergard as part of Beijing's diplomatic efforts to overcome differences on trade and foreign policy issues and improve relations with European countries.

During the meeting, Wang said Beijing wants to strengthen cooperation to uphold the international order based on international law and work together to address global challenges such as climate change, Xinhua reported.

He also welcomed greater participation by Swedish companies in China's market, citing its vast scale, complete industrial chains and diverse application scenarios.

Wang expressed hope that Sweden would provide Chinese enterprises with a "fair, just, and non-discriminatory" business environment.

Malmer Stenergard said after the meeting that trade relations with China and the war in Ukraine were among the key topics discussed.

The EU is more united now than before when it comes to trade relations with China, she told reporters, according to the TT news agency.

"We agree that we must achieve competition on equal terms," she said. "The EU is also prepared to take measures to achieve this. It is important that our Swedish companies can compete on equal terms globally."

The Swedish foreign minister also raised European concerns over Russia's war against Ukraine and expectations toward Beijing.

"It is obvious that we have two different views on the issue," Malmer Stenergard said, declining to comment further.