Beyond the List: The Broad Range of United Front Work in Sweden

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Headquarters of the United Front Work Department, Beijing. (Source: Wikipedia)

Executive Summary:

  • Sweden contains at least 103 organizations that are part of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) united front system and exist across the country’s culture, business, politics, and education sectors. The organizations promote strengthening cultural, economic, and technological ties with the PRC and amplify CCP narratives in Sweden.
  • United front groups use cultural exchanges and events to deepen cultural ties while subtly aligning Swedish perceptions with the Party’s views. One such “cultural night” in Stockholm was led by a man who was later deported for constituting a national security threat to Sweden.
  • Through organizations such as the China-Sweden International Technology Transfer Center, the Party leverages overseas Chinese in Sweden to attract funds, technology, and equipment to support the PRC’s central goal of achieving “Chinese-style modernization.”
  • By hosting events to protest on issues of concern to the CCP and disseminating Party newspapers to Swedish libraries, these organizations serve promote narratives favorable to the Party and facilitate connections that can aid the Party’s broader strategic objectives.

On October 1, Swedish reporters working as part of an international consortium of journalists broke the news of a leaked list identifying 233 individuals across Europe connected to the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) united front system, shedding light on the extent of the Party’s influence abroad (tv4.se, October 1). Tony Fang, a professor at Stockholm University who is affiliated with multiple united front agencies, was featured in the report (tv4.se, October 1). However, Fang and the 17 individuals based in Sweden named in the list are just a few of the Swedish individuals and organizations that are linked to the united front system. The scope of the Party’s united front network in Sweden extends far beyond the education sector. It is present across all areas in society, including culture, business, politics, and media. Further research by the Jamestown Foundation that traces CCP activities and organizations has now uncovered at least 103 united front groups in Sweden—only some of which were identified in the leaked list.

United front work (统战工作) is a key tool the Party uses to achieve its goal of the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation (中华民族伟大复兴) and become a global power by building relationships with individuals and their affiliated organizations it considers useful. As the Chinese Communist Party Regulation on United Front Work states, “The united front … is an important magic weapon for … realizing the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation” (Xinhua, January 5, 2021). CCP chairman Xi Jinping stated at the Central United Front Work Conference in 2015 that the united front “is about human relations, and the purpose of promoting the united front is to strengthen the forces for common struggle” (People’s Daily, May 21, 2015). Engaging with the united front system must be understood in the Party’s terms as an explicitly political activity rather than as ordinary civil society or private sector activities in a democratic society.

The 103 united front groups constitute a network the Party has cultivated to advance its goals. The organizations generally fall into categories such as identity-based (22), educational (23), cultural (18), business collaboration (18), professional (13), political (3), and media (6) groups. While they each have slightly different targets, the organizations promote strengthening cultural, economic, and technological ties with the PRC and amplify CCP narratives in Sweden.

Culturally, united front groups promote the CCP-approved version of Chinese culture through events in and exchanges with Sweden. For example, the China-Europe Cultural Association (中欧文化协会) and the Chinese Artists Association in Sweden (瑞典华人艺术家协会) co-hosted the 2023 Chinese Cultural Night as part of the annual Stockholm Culture Night in collaboration with over a hundred museums, theaters, galleries, libraries, and cultural institutions (Stockholm, August 29; China Cultural Center, April 25, 2023). The China-Europe Cultural Association was headed by Xuefei Chen Axelsson (陈雪霏), who was deported by the Swedish government in April 2024 for constituting threats to Sweden’s national security (Kinamedia, April 8). Over 400 people attended the event (Greenpost.se, April 23, 2023). Another example is the Nordic Chinese Times, which sends its newspapers to universities and libraries across the country and organizes annual visits to the PRC for foreign friends, who include Nordic sinologists, musicians, film directors, and producers (Sina, September 25, 2019). By promoting cultural exchanges like the Chinese Cultural Night and visits to the PRC, united front groups aim to deepen cultural ties while subtly aligning perceptions with the Party’s views.

Economically, united front organizations in Sweden help connect Swedish businesses with Chinese agencies. For example, in September 2024, the Sweden-China Chamber of Commerce co-hosted the Shenzhen Luohu-Sweden Green Economy and Trade Cooperation Exchange Conference, connecting the Luohu delegation with the Sweden-China Trade Council, an organization which lists Ikea and Volvo among its over a hundred members (Kinesiska Handelskammaren I Sverige, September 24; Sweden China Trade Council, Accessed October 2). As another example, in September 2019, the Northern Europe Shenzhen General Chamber of Commerce (北欧深圳总商会) and the Shenzhen Overseas Exchange Association organized a Shenzhen City Promotion and Exchange Seminar. Collaborations of this kind are framed as mutually beneficial business ties, but the Party is always heavily involved—in this case, the Shenzhen Overseas Exchange Association is an organizational unit of the Shenzhen United Front Work Department (CCP Shenzhen UFWD, September 29, 2019). As such, these collaborations ultimately serve the CCP’s long-term goal of integrating foreign economies with that of the PRC, increasing its leverage over and influence in Sweden’s political economy.

The organizations also help the PRC with technology transfer. For example, Zhang Qiaozhen (张巧珍), head of the Sweden-China Entrepreneur Association (瑞中企业家协会) and the North Europe Innovation Center (北欧创新中心), opened doors in Shenzhen for Ulf Borbos, vice chair of the China-Sweden International Technology Transfer Center. Borbos said his job was to “bring Swedish-incubated companies to Shenzhen and other cities in China” (Greenpost.se, September 17, 2023). Zhang also signed an international cooperation strategic agreement with the Swedish Incubator and Science Park (SISP) to build a high-tech exchange and cooperation platform between the PRC and Northern Europe in areas including new energy, electronics, biomedicine, and aerospace (Sweden-China Entrepreneur Association, October 17, 2018). SISP currently has 61 members (SISP, Accessed October 2). These efforts align with the Party’s broader strategy of making full use of overseas Chinese to attract funds, technology, and equipment to support the PRC’s central goal of achieving “Chinese-style modernization” (UFWD Nanchang Municipal Committee, May 12, 2017).

United front groups also promote CCP narratives in Sweden by acting as representatives of the Chinese diaspora community. In August 2022, after Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan, twenty organizations published a joint statement “expressing strong indignation and severe condemnation of Pelosi’s visit to Taiwan,” stating that “the complete reunification of the motherland is the common aspiration and sacred duty of all overseas Chinese communities in Sweden and all Chinese people” (Greenpost.se, August 6, 2022). Other examples include hosting events to promote “peace unification” and commenting on issues like the South China Sea (China Council for the Promotion of Peaceful National Reunification, September 10, 2018). By presenting a united voice and acting as representatives of the broader Chinese community, these groups work to align public opinion in Sweden with CCP-approved narratives, shaping perceptions on issues of critical importance to the Party.

The Party’s network of united front groups in Sweden plays a multifaceted role in promoting the CCP’s interests abroad, trying to shape Swedish culture, business, politics, and education. These organizations serve not only to deepen ties between Sweden and the PRC but also to promote narratives favorable to the CCP and facilitate connections that can aid the Party’s broader strategic objectives. The extensive reach and impact of the CCP’s united front work far beyond the PRC’s borders highlights the need to prioritize understanding of the Party’s network in Sweden, Europe, and the rest of the world.