Since the country awarded AIDS activist Liu Xiao Bo the Nobel Peace Prize in 2012, Beijing has embarked on a passive-aggressive campaign to sideline Norway, using everything from trade embargoes and visa rules that only apply to Norwegian citizens. Chinese diplomats said that the rules and exclusions will hopefully make Norway "recognize its mistakes and take steps to correct them."
The visa situation has gotten so bad the Norwegian abmassador has little to do in Beijing except practice tennis - he never has any meetings to go to.
The biggest trade snub is the refusal of Beijing to import Norwegian salmon, something that Chinese consumers have developed quite a taste for, but tons of the stuff lies rotting in warehouses. Despite the political foot-stamping, many Chinese seems unaware of the import ban, a situation that has been exploited by Chinese fisheries, hoping to horn in on Norway's territory. In little over a year, Norwegian exports of salmon to China have dropped from 92% in 2012, to 29% in 2013.
Despite China's "he said, she said" attitude, the Norwegians have been careful not to reciprocate with their own sanctions against Chinese people or products, probably hoping that the new administration will see things differently in time.
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