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Sweden |
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JapanâSweden relations are the bilateral relations of Japan and the Kingdom of Sweden. Contacts between the two countries can be traced back to the 18th century when Carl Peter Thunberg, a disciple of the botanist Carl Linnaeus, came to Japan for plant collecting and researching. This made him the first Swedish national to visit Japan. [1]
The formal diplomatic relations of Japan and Sweden was established by the signing of Swedish-Japanese Treaty in 1868, [2] which was also the first treaty the Meiji Government made with a foreign state. [3]: 2 During the first decade of the 20th century, the two countries started opening legations in Tokyo and Stockholm, then promoted to embassies in 1957. [1]
Japan is Sweden's second largest trading partner in Asia, [4] and some Swedish policies on welfare, population ageing and international affairs like peacekeeping and official development assistance have been taken concern, or even example of, by Japan. [5] The bilateral relations are also strengthened through state visits, royal visits, cultural or academic exchanges from both side. [1]