Welcome Ceremony for Former Prime Minister of Sweden and Former President of the European Council and Press Conference on Enterprises Entering Expo 2027 Belgrade Successfully Held

On September 15, 2026, the Welcome Ceremony for the Former Prime Minister of Sweden and the Thematic Event on Enterprises Entering Expo 2027 Belgrade were grandly held in Shanghai. The event was hosted by the Global Sustainable Development Alliance Foundation and Daguo Culture Co., Ltd., and co-organized by Huiju Kechuang Investment Holdings Co., Ltd. and Beijing Mibo Huaxia Culture Investment Management Co., Ltd. It brought together former European political leaders, representatives of international chambers of commerce—including the Norwegian Chamber of Commerce, Swedish Chamber of Commerce, Austrian Chamber of Commerce, and American Chamber of Commerce—experts in the Expo field, business leaders from China and abroad, and guests from various sectors. Focusing on core topics such as China-Europe economic and trade cooperation, Chinese brands going global, international dissemination of intangible cultural heritage, global sustainable development, and international opportunities at Expo 2027 Belgrade, the event built a high-end international cooperation platform to promote deeper industrial and cultural linkages between China and other countries.

Before the event began, John Fredrik Reinfeldt, former Prime Minister of Sweden and former President of the European Council, made a special visit to the Global Sustainable Development Lounge. Zhang Qihua, Chairman of the Global Sustainable Development Alliance Foundation and Chairman of the event organizing committee, accompanied and received him throughout the visit. During the visit, Reinfeldt learned in detail about the Lounge’s work in promoting sustainable development as a civil society force, and focused his inquiries on the exploratory framework document officially released at the United Nations in July this year—the first document to systematically outline pathways for civil society participation in SDG implementation—titled the White Paper on Civil Society Forces Implementing the UN 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. The white paper established for the first time the core position, action pathways, implementation standards, and practical system of “civil society, civil forces, and civil actors” in global sustainable development, redefining a new dimension of global sustainable governance.

Former Prime Minister Reinfeldt further learned about the Lounge’s achievements in promoting the implementation of global sustainable development issues and advancing international cooperation in green industries, and highly recognized its positioning as a hub for building global multilateral cooperation and building consensus on sustainable development. Reinfeldt said that sustainable development is a core issue faced by all countries and requires governments, the business community, and social organizations to form synergies. The operating model of the Global Sustainable Development Lounge provides an innovative example for international cooperation that can be drawn upon, and he looks forward to relying on this platform in the future to promote the implementation of more China-Europe green industry cooperation projects.

First, John Fredrik Reinfeldt, former Prime Minister of Sweden and former President of the European Council, delivered a speech. He said that climate change, energy transition, industrial upgrading, and mutual learning among civilizations are common challenges for all humanity, and that the UN SDGs have set a green, inclusive, and balanced development direction for the world. Sustainable development requires the joint participation of governments, enterprises, cultural institutions, and young people, and ESG has become a foundational capability for enterprises’ internationalization, long-term operations, and cross-regional cooperation. Europe and Sweden are willing to deepen cooperation with China in the green economy and sustainable business. He emphasized that business connects the world and culture brings humanity together. Chinese intangible cultural heritage and traditional Chinese medicine are precious civilizational assets for all humanity, and bringing Chinese intangible cultural heritage to the world is cultural sustainable development. Expo 2027 Belgrade is an important window for Chinese brands, enterprises, and culture to reach Europe and the world. He congratulated the launch of platforms including the Global Intangible Cultural Heritage Cultural Exchange Center, the Listed Company ESG Club, the World Leaders Business School, and the Global Leaders/Next-Generation Leaders Development Program, and looked forward to China and Europe continuing to deepen enterprise dialogue, cultural exchange, youth connectivity, and project cooperation, and jointly building a new open, inclusive, and win-win pattern of globalization.

The Global Intangible Cultural Heritage Cultural Exchange Center was unveiled, and sustainable development honors were awarded.

Three major cooperation platforms were unveiled and launched to empower international cooperation in multiple fields. Chairman Zhang Qihua delivered a welcome address on behalf of the event organizing committee. He pointed out that the core direction of this ceremony is “linking China and Europe and sharing opportunities,” aiming to rely on Expo 2027 Belgrade—a top global event—to build a core window for Chinese brands and Chinese culture to reach Europe and the world, help Chinese enterprises seize new opportunities for international cooperation, and jointly push global sustainable development to a new level.

At the core launch session of the ceremony, a strategic platform for international cultural cooperation was officially unveiled—the Global Intangible Cultural Heritage Cultural Exchange Center of Daguo Culture Co., Ltd. With the international dissemination and exchange of intangible cultural heritage as its core direction, the platform will in the future rely on the China-Europe cooperation window to promote Chinese intangible cultural heritage abroad and connect it with European and global markets, while providing long-term and stable support and services for Chinese cultural enterprises going global and participating in international cooperation.

Zhou Jie, Vice Chairman of the Global Sustainable Development Alliance Foundation; Kong Meiqi, Executive Chairman of the Youth Artists Art Committee of the Global Sustainable Development Alliance Foundation; Zhang Jing, Executive Chairman of the World Healing Hotel Alliance and Chairman of Yushu Heting; and Chen Yujia, Chairman of Shanghai Jinshang Huaxian Biotechnology Co., Ltd., jointly completed the unveiling ceremony. With a countdown from the audience, the three strategic cooperation platforms were officially put into operation and will continue to leverage their advantages in gathering platform resources to build long-term and stable bridges for China-Europe international cooperation.

After the platform unveiling ceremony, the event featured a special global sustainable development honor award session, at which former Prime Minister Reinfeldt personally presented plaques to the honored individuals and enterprises. Five major honors were awarded, including: Global Sustainable Development Outstanding Figure Award; Global Sustainable Development Brand Going Global Award; Global Sustainable Development Intangible Cultural Heritage Award; Global Sustainable Development Outstanding Women Award; and others.

Former Prime Minister Reinfeldt presented plaques to each honoree one by one, congratulated all individuals and enterprises on their outstanding contributions in the field of sustainable development, and encouraged them to continue to play a leading role and drive more market entities to participate in global sustainable development cooperation.

The project “Enterprises Entering Expo 2027 Belgrade” was officially launched, and the core team of the organizing committee appeared.

After the award session, the event moved to its most important international project release segment—the global launch of Enterprises Entering Expo 2027 Belgrade and the plaque presentation ceremony for the organizing committee. Expo 2027 Belgrade is the first comprehensive World Expo hosted by Serbia and a top-stage global event for countries to showcase achievements in industry, culture, science, and technology. It is also a core strategic window for Chinese brands, Chinese culture, and Chinese industries to enter the European market.

At the event, the core organizing committee members of the Enterprises Entering Expo 2027 Belgrade project appeared collectively. The members include: Honorary Chairman Huang Yaocheng (former Deputy Director of the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination for Expo 2010); Chairman Zhang Qihua (Chairman of the Global Sustainable Development Alliance Foundation); Co-Chairman Gu Yueming (former Deputy Director of the Shanghai Investment Promotion Service Center and Dean of the Zhongli Weiye Industrial Investment Research Institute); Co-Chairman Mike (former Special Prosecutor and Minister of Justice of the Republic of Palau); Secretary-General Xie Youling (Chairman of Beijing Mibo Huaxia Culture Investment Management Co., Ltd.); Deputy Secretary-General Zhu Fang (President of Shanghai Huancheng Center); Deputy Secretary-General Jiang Jinrong (Chairman of Jingbanwen (Shanghai) Data Technology Co., Ltd.); Deputy Secretary-General Shi Wenxin (Director of Beijing Mibo Huaxia Culture Investment Management Co., Ltd.); Deputy Secretary-General Meng Ting (former Deputy Director of the Shanghai Office of the Yangtze River Delta Working Committee of the China-Europe Association); and Legal Counsel Sun Weitao (Director of Beijing Beidou Dingming (Harbin) Law Firm).

Former Prime Minister Reinfeldt and Chairman Zhang Qihua jointly presented plaques to the core organizing committee members, marking the official and full launch of the Enterprises Entering Expo 2027 Belgrade project. After the plaque presentation ceremony, all guests on stage took a group photo to capture this milestone moment for Chinese brands going global.

Guests from multiple fields held in-depth dialogues on new opportunities for global cooperation.

After the launch ceremony, several domestic and international guests took the stage to share their views. Ms. Ola Yespanko, Academician of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine and Vice Chairman of the Global Sustainable Development Alliance Foundation, delivered a speech on economic, trade, and cultural cooperation between Central and Eastern European countries and China, affirming the positive significance of the event in promoting regional cooperation. Huang Yaocheng, former Deputy Director of the Bureau of Shanghai World Expo Coordination for Expo 2010 and Honorary Chairman of the project organizing committee, shared China’s historical experience in participating in and hosting World Expos and analyzed the strategic value of Expo 2027 Belgrade for Chinese enterprises going global. Mike, former Special Prosecutor and Minister of Justice of the Republic of Palau and Co-Chairman of the organizing committee, interpreted new pathways for enterprises going global against the backdrop of global sustainable development from the perspective of international cooperation. Gu Yueming, former Deputy Director of the Shanghai Investment Promotion Service Center and Co-Chairman of the organizing committee, shared judgments on new trends in China-Europe economic and trade cooperation and put forward practical suggestions for Chinese enterprises entering the European market.

Subsequently, the event held a thematic roundtable forum. Guests held in-depth discussions around four major themes: “New Space for China-Europe Economic and Trade Cooperation,” “Breakthrough Pathways for Chinese Brands Going Global,” “How Sustainable Development Can Be Implemented in Real Industries,” and “Global Opportunities at Expo 2027 Belgrade.” They reviewed the opportunities and challenges currently facing international cooperation and put forward multiple actionable ideas and suggestions for Chinese enterprises to participate in Expo 2027 and expand into the European market. After the roundtable forum, Zhang Jing, Executive Chairman of the World Healing Hotel Alliance and Chairman of Yusu Heting Healing Hotel, and Chen Yujia, Chairman of Shanghai Jinshang Huaxian Biotechnology Co., Ltd., shared the exploratory achievements of their enterprises in participating in global sustainable development cooperation based on their respective fields.

The event also invited many representatives of domestic and international institutions and enterprises, including Dag Hansson, representative of the Norwegian Chamber of Commerce; Per Linder, representative of the Swedish Chamber of Commerce and the Nordic Center; Harry, President of Blue Brain Technology and representative of the Austrian Chamber of Commerce; Alex, an innovator in the electric vehicle field and representative of the American Chamber of Commerce; Miao Zhihua, Curator of the Pharmacopoeia Museum; Kiki, founder of a superfood latte brand; and others.

As of this event, the Enterprises Entering Expo 2027 Belgrade project has completed the formation of its organizing committee and its global launch. Next, it will open registration to Chinese enterprises across industries and organize Chinese brands, Chinese intangible cultural heritage, and Chinese enterprises to appear collectively at Expo 2027 Belgrade, promoting more high-quality Chinese industrial and cultural achievements to global markets.