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Gui was seized in January by 10 plainclothes agents while travelling by train with Swedish diplomats. Sweden said its officials were taking him to seek medical treatment.

In a 20-minute appearance on Friday, Gui told reporters that officials in Sweden had “sensationalized” his case for political purposes ahead of this year’s general election, according to the Post. The newspaper said it was approached by China’s Ministry of Public Security about an interview on Wednesday — a day after Wallstrom’s statement — and it agreed to take part, provided that it could ask any questions it wanted.

“Looking back, I might have become Sweden’s chess piece. I broke the law again under their instigation,” Gui was quoted by the Post as saying. “My wonderful life has been ruined and I would never trust the Swedish ever again.”

The Swedish foreign ministry said in an email that “Sweden has acted strictly in accordance with basic international rules on consular support.”

“We continue to demand that our citizen be given the opportunity to meet with Swedish diplomatic and medical staff, and that he be released so that he can be reunited with his daughter and family,” it said.

Patric Nilsson, a foreign ministry spokesman, told Swedish media on Friday that Gui’s comments would not sway Sweden’s calls for his release, which have been echoed by Germany, the European Union and the United States.

“We have a clear demand that he be set free, so that he can meet his family,” Nilsson told the TT news agency. “Those demands remain.”