The Secretary-General of the Nordic Council of Ministers His Excellency Mr. Dagfinn Høybråten visited China Foreign Affairs University (CFAU) on May 25, 2017. He was met by the President of CFAU, Professor Qin Yaqing, accompanied by Director of the Office of Foreign Affairs Wu Xiaoping and Director of the Institute of International Relations Associate Professor Qu Bo.

President Qin extended a warm welcome to Mr. Høybråten and his delegation. He introduced CFAU and the Training School on China Foreign Affairs, stressing that CFAU trains students to develop a global vision, as well as a great learning and a grand harmony.

Mr. Høybråten said he was pleased to have the opportunity to visit CFAU, hoping that collaboration between CFAU and Nordic universities and research institutes would further strength academic research and training links.

Mr. Høybråten delivered a speech entitled Sino-Northern European Cooperation at the International Exchange Center at CFAU. The event was hosted by Associate Professor Qu Bo.

In his address, Mr. Høybråten shared the experiences of Nordic countries tackling issues such as green development, climate governance, food safety, gender equality and social welfare. He also hoped that the Nordic countries and China could make joint efforts to tackle emerging challenges. 

Mr. Høybråten answered questions from students about Nordic understanding of the international responsibility shouldered by China, and the knowledge China can gain from Nordic philosophy on green development.

As a senior Norwegian politician, Mr. Høybråten has served as the Chairman of the Young Christian Democrats (KrFU in Norwegian), State Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, Minister of Health, Minister of Labour and Social Affairs, Vice President of the Norwegian Parliament from 2011–2013, and Chair of the Board of the GAVI Alliance from 2011-2015. He was appointed Secretary-General of the Nordic Council of Ministers in 2013.