Mr. Song Jingwu, Vice President of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), met in Beijing with Mme. WATANABE MITSUKO, the relatives of Former Japanese Prime Minister OHIRA MASAYOSHI and the Vice President of Japan-China Film Festival Executive Committee on December 18th. Mme. WATANABE MITSUKO visiting China this time was to attend the celebration of the 40th anniversary of China’s reform and opening up. Vice President Song Jingwu extended welcome to WATANABE  MITSUKO and conveyed the cordial greetings from President Li Xiaolin to her. Vice President Song expressed warm congratulations on Mr. OHIRA MASAYOSHI being awarded China reform friendship medal. Vice President Song said, the celebration of the 40th anniversary of China’s reform and opening up was held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing this morning. Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered an important speech and awarded  China reform friendship medals to 10 international friends, which aimed to appreciate international society for supporting and assisting the cause of China’s reform and opening up. Mr. OHIRA MASAYOSHI is a Japanese politician with whom Chinese People are familiar. We would never forget the important contributions he had made to promoting the normalization of the diplomatic relations between China and Japan, and giving support and assistance in the cause of China’s reform and opening up. The film exchange is an important field for the cultural and people-to-people exchanges of the two countries. We spoke highly of the active efforts Mme. WATANABE MITSUKO had made for a long time to develop the exchange of the film of the two countries and also hoped that Mme. WATANABE MITSUKO could continue inheriting the spirit of Sino-Japanese friendship and making more contributions to the cultural exchange of two countries. WATANABE MITSUKO thanked Vice President Song for taking time to meet her and asked Vice President Song to convey her sincere greetings to President Li Xiaolin. WATANABE MITSUKO said that it is encouraging she was invited to attend the celebration of the 40th anniversary of China’s reform and opening up and received China’s Reform and Opening-up Friendship Prize awarded by the Chinese government for her grandfather. I listened carefully to the speech made by the Chinese President Xi Jinping this morning. During serving as Japanese foreign minister, my grandfather assisted Japanese Prime Minister, Kakuei Tanaka, in realizing the normalization of Sino-Japanese diplomatic relations. After serving as Japanese Prime Minister, he paid more attention to and actively promoted the relationship with China. I lived with my grandfather since I was a child, and I was unconsciously influenced by what I constantly heard and saw. Over the years, I actively took part in the cultural exchange of the two countries. At present, I serve as the Vice President of Japan-China Film Festival Executive Committee, which aims to enhance mutual understanding and trust by the way of the films and other forms that the nations like to hear and see. I would like to take cultural and people-to-people exchanges as carriers to make efforts to push bilateral relations for improvement.  

Mr. Song Jingwu, Vice President of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), met in Beijing with Mr. MATSUSHITA MASAYUKI, Vice President of Panasonic, who was invited to attend the celebration of the 40th anniversary of China’s reform and opening up, and his delegation on December 18th. Mme. Zhu Dan, Deputy Director General of Department of Japanese Affairs of CPAFFC, Mr. Zhang Kai, Deputy Director of Panasonic Corporation of China and etc. attended the meeting. Vice President Song congratulated Konosuke Matsushita on being awarded China reform friendship medal. Song said, this year marks the 40th anniversary of the Signing of the China-Japan Treaty of Peace and Friendship. This year also marks the 40th anniversary of China’s reform and opening up. Today, the celebration of the 40th anniversary of China’s reform and opening up was held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing. General Secretary Xi Jinping and party and state leaders of China awarded Chinese and foreign reform pioneers medals and China reform friendship medals. Mr. Konosuke Matsushita received this honor as the pioneer of international famous enterprises participating in China’s reform and opening up, which fully demonstrated the highly commendation for the outstanding contributions Konosuke Matsushita and Panasonic had made to the cause of China’s reform and opening up. General Secretary Xi Jinping delivered an important speech at the conference, reviewing the glorious history of the development of China’s reform and opening up in the past four decades, declaring China’s determination to expand opening-up and build a community with a shared future for mankind. This was a huge opportunity for the countries all over the world including Japan. We sincerely expected Panasonic and friends from Japanese economic circles to further deepen the pragmatic cooperation with Chinese side and make more contributions to the friendship for generations of the two peoples and the development of the bilateral relations. MATSUSHITA MASAYUKI thanked Chinese government for conferring on her grandfather China reform friendship medal, which is a great honor for her family and Panasonic. My grandfather dedicated his life to the cause of China’s reform and opening up. It was the first company among large enterprises in the world to make decision to invest in China, which made great achievements and also set a good example for Japanese companies entering China’s market. At present, Panasonic has 75 companies in China and around 60 thousand employees, which has become a vital pillar of Panasonic. I still work in Kansai Economic Federation as Vice President and other positions now and have led delegations to visit China and work with CPAFFC to co-organize the exchange meetings for the entrepreneurs of the two countries for 4 consecutive years. Looking to the future, Panasonic and Japanese economic circles would like to take China’s development as an opportunity to deepen the exchanges and cooperation with China in various fields, so as to realize common development, mutual benefit, and benefit to the people of the two countries.          

China-Azerbaijan Friendship Concert, co-hosted by the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), Embassy of the Republic of Azerbaijan to the People’s Republic of China, Heydar Aliyev Foundation, was held successfully in National Center for the Performing Arts on December 17th, 2018. Over 1,400 people including Mr. Shao Hong, Vice Chairman of National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), Mr. Ali Akhmedov, Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Mme. Li Xiaolin, President of CPAFFC and audience from all walks of life in Beijing, attended the concert. CPPCC Vice Chairman Shao Hong, Deputy Prime Minister Ali Akhmedov delivered speeches respectively. Azerbaijan State Chamber Orchestra named after Kara Karayev and several music artists performed classic Azerbaijan orchestra music and classical and ethnic music. Before the performance, CPPCC Vice Chairman Shao Hong met with visiting Azerbaijan Deputy Prime Minister Ali Akhmedov on the invitation of CPAFFC.       Photographed by Wen Guangmei

On Dec.17th, Vice President Xie Yuan met with Presidents from the U.S. Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU). Vice President XieYuan said that educational and cultural exchange is an important part of our bilateral relationship. Last year, over 350 thousand Chinese students were studying in the U.S., making China the largest sender of students to the U.S.. CPAFFC stands ready to cooperate with HBCU to deepen educational and cultural cooperation with the U.S.. President David Wilson of Morgan State University, who is the head of HBCU delegation,briefed on HBCU and said that HBCU, with its long history and  numerous superior disciplines, hopes to enroll more Chinese students and cooperate with China’s higher learning institutions in terms of students exchange and mutual credit recognition.        

From December 6th to 8th, co-hosted by CPAFFC , Guangzhou Municipal Government, UCLG  and the World Association of  Major Metropolises(METROPOLIS), the Global Mayors' Forum & 2018 Urban Innovation Conference and  the 4th Edition of Guangzhou Award for Urban Innovation  (Guangzhou Award) was held at Baiyun International Conference Center in Guangzhou. More than 700 guests and representatives from 105 cities and local governments in 39 countries were present at the Conference. On December 7th, Mr. He Wei, Vice-Chairman of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) National Committee,  Mr. Ma Xingrui, Governor of Guangdong Province, Song Jingwu, Vice President of CPAFFC, Emilia Saiz, UCLG Secretary-General, and Rudi Vervoort, Representative of METROPOLIS, Minister President of Brussels Capital Region, Belgium, addressed the opening ceremony. Maimunah Mohd Sharif, United Nations Under-Secretary-General and Executive Director of UN-Habitat sent a video remarks. Mr. Wen Guohui, mayor of Guangzhou, chaired the opening ceremony.  Tri Rismaharin, Mayor of Surabaya and President of UCLG ASPAC also attended the conference. Vice-Chairman He Wei pointed out in his speech that, the Chinese Government attaches great importance to and actively supports international exchanges and cooperation in urban governance innovation.. Guangzhou Award as an important exchange platform will better serve global cities and benefit global citizens.    Vice President Song Jingwu said that the Global Mayors' Forum is established with the purpose of further implementing the United Nations’ SDGs and the New Urban Agenda, and encouraging cities worldwide to participate in global governance and to contribute insights to a more fair, sound and balanced global governance mechanism. The theme of the forum is titled Global Openness and Inclusive Innovation. A three-day activities was organized. The Guangzhou Declaration at the Global Mayors’ Forum is also released. Five cities are awarded as the winning cities of the 4th Edition of Guangzhou Award: Milan of Italy, Guadalajara of Mexico, Wuhan of China, Mezitili of Turkey and New York City of the United States. Surabaya of Indonesia received the largest number of votes to win the Online Popular City.        

On December 7th, Mr. Song Jingwu Vice president of CPAFFC attended the First UCLG ASPAC Retreat in Guangzhou. As the newly elected co-president, Vice president Song Jingwu co-chaired the Retreat together with  Tri Rismaharin, Mayor of Surabaya and President of UCLG ASPAC, and Secretary General of  UCLG ASPAC. Vice president Song expressed his gratitude to the Executive Board and Council for their long-term support to CPAFFC and the 25 city members of China. He said that under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative CPAFFC and the Chinese city members will work closely with UCLG ASPAC to promote implementing the United Nations’ SDGs and the New Urban Agenda, and to jointly build Asia-Pacific Community of Shared future. The Retreat was held simultaneously with the Global Mayors’ Forum and the 4th Edition of Guangzhou Award. The members reviewed 2015-2020 Strategic Plan, also known as the Manifesto, and discussed the challenges and expectations for ASPAC.              

Co-hosted by Hangzhou Municipal government and CPAFFC the fist assembly of the Belt and Road Local Government Committee (BRLC) met in Hangzhou from December 2nd to 5th. Mr. Zhou Jiangyong, member of Standing Committee of Zhejiang Party Provincial Committee and Hangzhou municipal party secretary, Mr. Xu Liyi, Mayor of Hangzhou, Mr. Xie Yuan, Vice president of CPAFFC, Dr. Bernadia, Secretary General of UCLG and Tri Rismaharin, Mayor of Surabaya and President of UCLG ASPAC attended the meeting and delivered speeches. More than 150 delegates from 20 countries attended the meeting. The members adopted the constitution of the committee, elected the leaders and deliberated the working plan down the road. The BRLC was initiated by Hangzhou Municipal Government and CPAFFC. BRLC which is based in Hangzhou was unveiled in the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation. With 70 members to date, the committee has carried out a variety of activities based on the philology of opening-up, cooperation, sharing and win-win result, playing an important role in building the Belt and Road by putting in place a platform for knowledge and resource sharing and cooperation.            

Mr. Song Jingwu, Vice President of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), met with visiting Mr. Thierry BERTHELOT, First Counselor of the French Embassy in China and his delegation on December 5th, 2018. Both sides had a brief discussion on the activities in commemoration of the 55th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic relations between China and France. Vice President Song Jingwu introduced the work CPAFFC had developed for France this year and the work plans in next year. He also proposed the idea that the reception to celebrate the 55th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic relations between China and France will be held during the French high-level delegation visiting China next year. Counselor Thierry BERTHELOT thanked CPAFFC for making the contributions to promoting the exchanges between China and France. He also said, the French important personages could be invited to attend the reception in Beijing during their visiting China in the first three months next year. Both sides also exchanged their views on how to develop a series of activities in commemoration of the 55th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic ties of the two countries. Mr. Alain GALAUP, Political Counselor of the French Embassy in China, Mme. Zhang Ruoning, Deputy Director General of Department of European and Asian Affairs of CPAFFC attended the meeting.          

Co-sponsored by the CPAFFC, the China International Culture Exchange Centre (CICEC), the Chinese Cultural Exchange Association and the People's Publishing House, “He Attracted the World’s Attention”, an exhibition in commemoration of late Premier Zhou Enlai, was opened at the Handover Gift Museum of Macao on December 5, 2018. Edmund Ho Hau Wah, Vice Chairman of the CPPCC, Lionel Leong Vai Tac, Acting Chief Executive of Macao, Sun Da, Deputy Director of the Liaison Office of the Central People's Government in the Macao SAR, Deputy Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China in the Macao SAR, Hu Sishe, Vice President of the CPAFFC, Alexis Tam Chon Weng, Secretary for Social Affairs and Culture of the Macao SAR, Zhao Wei, Deputy Secretary General of the Sixth and Seventh CPPCC National Committee, Li Zhongjie, Advisor to the CICEC and former Deputy Director of the Party History Research Center Central committee of the CPC, Zhou Erjun, former Political Commissar of the PLA National Defense University, Lei Pui Lam, President of the Chinese Cultural Exchange Association, Chui Sai Peng, President of Executive Council of the Chinese Cultural Exchange Association, and around 100 guests from the Macao SAR government and cultural and educational circles attended the opening ceremony. CPAFFC Vice President Hu Sishe and Secretary Alexis Tam Chon Weng address the opening ceremony In his speech, Hu Sishe said that Premier Zhou Enlai is the advocate and practitioner of the Five Principles of Peaceful Coexistence. The CPAFFC has always followed these principles when carrying out exchanges with other countries. At the same time, he never lost his heart and loyalty to the party, always adhered to the faith and bore in mind the mission. He is known as a model of every Chinese people. He also expressed his hope that the exhibition will enable more people to deeply understand and learn from Premier Zhou’s patriotism, promote the people-to-people bond, deepen exchanges and cooperation between the two sides, and take the opportunity of the 40th anniversary of reform and opening up to jointly work for the rejuvenation of the Chinese nations. In his welcome speech, Alexis Tam Chon Weng stated that Premier Zhou Enlai enjoys a very high prestige in the compatriots in Hong Kong and Macao. This exhibition has a far-reaching and great significance in Macao. He believed that all Macao people will turn their longing for the late premier into power, to unite as one and work hard for the homeland. Guests addressing the opening ceremony Sun Da, Zhou Erjun and Chui Sai Peng also delivered speeches at the opening ceremony, expressing their longing for late Premier Zhou and recognizing the great significance of holding the exhibition at the crucial historical moment of building a great modern socialist country in every dimension. Guests visiting the exhibition The exhibition is divided into four parts, namely Accomplishments, Selflessness, Integrity and Love. A total of 137 pieces of exhibits, including calligraphy artwork about the late premier by celebrities all over the world, photographs, as well as other precious exhibits and historical materials provided by his relatives and staff. Most of the exhibits are authentic and have high historical value. After the opening ceremony, the local citizens and students watched the exhibition and left messages to express their feelings. Audience watching the exhibition and leaving messages The exhibition will be held in Macao from December 5 to 12, 2018 and have received large media coverage.         Photographed by Liu Hongwei

"China-Germany Globalization Forum" was held in Berlin, Germany on December 3rd. This Forum was co-hosted by the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), Konrad-Adenauer Stiftung and Daimler AG. Mr. Song Jingwu, Vice President of CPAFFC, Mr. Ma Canrong, Former Chinese Ambassador to Germany, Mr. Manfred Grund, Parliamentary Secretary of the union Party (CDU/CSU) parliamentary group, Mr. Frank Priess, Vice President of International Department of Konrad-Adenauer Stiftung, attended the forum and delivered speeches respectively. Over 30 Chinese and German experts and scholars on political, economic and academic fields had an in-depth exchanges on the opportunities and challenges the whole world had confronted with, and the current situation and future of the cooperation between China and Germany under the background. Vice President Song Jingwu said in his speech that, looking at the development of modern history of the two countries, China and Germany should firmly support and uphold the globalization. CPAFFC would like to institutionalize the forum and held discussions frequently on Sino-German relations, China-EU relations and hot issues. Mr. Zhang Junhui, Chargé d'Affaires a.i. of Chinese Embassy in Germany attended the forum.                       Photographed by Zhang Ji