On June 23, the leading Icelandic newspaper Morgunblaðið carried an article by Ambassador He Rulong entitled "Sharing New Opportunities for Development ".
The full text is as follows:
How time flies. It’s been more than a year since I have been in this beautiful country. During this period, I have lost no time in promoting exchanges and cooperation between China and Iceland in various fields, with a view to advancing the friendly bilateral ties. Last May was particularly eventful. While congratulating Iceland for its successful hosting of the 4th Summit of the European Council, I am gratified to see further growth of China-Iceland relations in the field of politics, economy and trade.
On May 26, Chairman Zhao Leji of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) of China, held a meeting through vedio link with Birgir Ármannsson, Speaker of the Alþingi of Iceland. This is by far the highest-level meeting between leaders of China and the Nordic countries this year. It was acknowledged by both sides during the meeting that, although China and Iceland are geographically far apart from each other and have many differences, friendly cooperation has always remained the main theme of bilateral relations. Noting that China has been Iceland's largest trading partner in Asia 15 years in a row, and this year marks the 10th anniversary since the signing of a free trade agreement between the two countries, it was hoped that the two sides will bring the leading force of the free trade agreement into full play and deepen practical cooperation, by jointly promoting green development and furthering exchanges and cooperation in renewable energy, culture and tourism. I stand ready to work with my Icelandic friends to follow up on the outcome of this meeting so as to bring tangible benefits to our peoples.
In terms of practical cooperation, the Chinese Embassy and the Ministry of Culture and Business Affairs of Iceland had jointly organized an inaugural "China-Iceland E-Commerce and Live Streaming Week". Thanks to meticulous preparations and planing, five Chinese KOLs or influencers together with representatives of e-commerce giant Douyin came to Iceland and showcased live streaming sale to the Chinese consumers from 10th to 12th May. The purpose was to present fine Icelandic goods and brands to the huge Chinese market through a way similar to TV shopping, but with a smaller and more mobile screen. On the first day of the live streaming, one brand which was most popular with the Chinese consumers registered 300 million ISK in sales volume, more than a quarter of its annual exports to China in 2022. According to statistics, a total of nearly 700 million ISK products were sold to the Chinese consumers during the e-commerce and live streaming week, including cosmetics, food, health care products and clothing. Many Icelandic friends from business and media told me that they were astonished to hear this figure. I hope this event will help introduce to the Icelandic friends China's huge market potential and new business models. I would also like to see more mutually beneficial cooperation in e-commerce so as to inject new impetus to our bilateral relations.
There is an Icelandic saying “ Vandi er vel boðnu að neita”. At present, China has embarked on a new journey of building a modern socialist country in all respects. The chinese path to modernization is presenting Iceland and all other countries around the world with new opportunities and potentials for cooperation. Summer has come here to Iceland. Apart from enjoying the summer, my team and I are actively planning for several events. I hope our work will help Icelandic friends better understand China so as to seize new opportunities arising from the development of China-Iceland relations. I look forward to hearing from Icelandic friends about your experience with China and your thoughts on China-Iceland relations.