China has cleared the way for a landmark visit by the Dutch trade minister – signalled by Beijing’s quiet removal of long-held sanctions on the official – at a time when their bilateral relations need some attention, according to people familiar with the matter.
Beijing has agreed to host Sjoerd Sjoerdsma for a visit and has removed him from the sanction list, a source said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the issue.
“No date is fixed yet [between Beijing and The Hague] … only that it is supposed to take place before the summer,” the source said, adding that Sjoerdsma was currently in talks with various industry groups over his planned visit.
If the trip pans out, Sjoerdsma would become the first minister from the new Dutch government, sworn in on February 23, to visit China.
He first expressed his intention to lead a trade mission to Beijing last month during his meeting with China’s commerce minister, Wang Wentao, on the sidelines of a World Trade Organization summit in Cameroon.
Sjoerdsma was sanctioned by Beijing in 2021 for his criticism of alleged human rights abuses in the Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, which Beijing has long denied. Chinese authorities have previously declined to comment when asked if Sjoerdsma was still on the sanction list.
