A Series of Activities in Commemoration of CPAFFC’s 60th Anniversary Held

The China International Friendship Conference in commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries （CPAFFC） was held at the Great Hall of the People on the afternoon of May 15. Chinese President Xi Jinping delivered an important speech. CPAFFC President Li Xiaolin spoke on the work of the CPAFFC in the past six decades， and five international friends also made remarks.

On the morning of May 16， 60 Years Unforgettable， a special TV program in commemoration of China’s people-to-people diplomacy over the past 60 years was recorded live by China Central Television （CCTV）. The 12 stories of friendship between the Chinese and other peoples included in the program spanned from the revolutionary war years to the present period of deepening reform in a comprehensive way.

Present at these occasions were current and past State leaders—Chen Changzhi， Arken Imirbaki， Chen Yuan， Wang Jiarui， He Luli， Cheng Siwei， Gu Xiulian， Uyunqimg， Jiang Shusheng， Sang Guowei， Tang Jiaxuan， Hu Qili， Luo Haocai， Xu Kuangdi， Bai Lichen， Abdul’ahat Abdulrixit and Zheng Wantong； 24 incumbent and former national leaders of foreign countries and nearly 400 representatives of friendship associations and friendly personages from 47 countries.

President Xi Jinping Delivers an Important Speech

President Xi， on behalf of the Chinese government and people， extended warm congratulations on the opening of the conference and paid tribute to all the peace-loving international friends cherishing friendship with China and sympathizing with and supporting its revolution， reform and development over the years.

He expounded， in a systematic way， the significance of people-to-people friendship for world peace and development and reaffirmed China’s consistent stand and steadfast determination to pursue the path of peaceful development. He said， “Friendship among peoples is the foundation for world peace and development as well as a precondition for win-win cooperation.” China would open itself wider to the world， advance mutually beneficial cooperation with other countries， and promote the development of the economic belt along the Silk Road and the Maritime Silk Road so that countries involved could create and share development opportunities together.

He continued， “The Chinese nation always loves peace” and “has been pursuing and maintaining the philosophy of peace， friendship and harmony.” It would continue to pursue peaceful development and encourage other countries to follow the same path.

He stressed that exchanges between different cultures and mutual learning should be strengthened for the maintenance of world peace and promotion of common development， and “people-to-people diplomacy represents the most profound force in such exchanges and mutual learning.”

President Xi spoke highly of the achievements of the CPAFFC over the past 60 years and put forward further requirements for the work of people-to-people diplomacy. He said， “Over the years， the CPAFFC has followed China’s independent foreign policy of peace and devoted itself to making friends with other countries and peoples.” “It has played an irreplaceable role in deepening people-to-people friendship， enhancing state-to-state relations， and advancing international cooperation，” adding that throughout its existence， “the CPAFFC has fully demonstrated the power of friendship between people of different countries in promoting world peace and development as well as the important place people-to-people diplomacy has in China’s overall diplomatic agenda.”

He expressed the hope that the CPAFFC would build on its past accomplishment to achieve greater success in promoting people-to-people diplomacy， city-to-city diplomacy and public diplomacy， and make still greater contributions to friendly exchanges between China and other countries.

He emphasized that people-to-people diplomacy needed innovation. Efforts should be made to conduct multi-tiered friendly exchanges in various fields and through diverse channels. Sincerity was the key to bringing the Chinese people and those of other countries together. People-to-people diplomacy should leverage its advantages to open more channels for communication， set up more platforms for cooperation， and encourage more foreign institutions and talents to contribute to the modernization of China.

He urged that more efforts needed to be made on the sister city project to encourage exchanges at the local government level. Attention should be given to public diplomacy to spread China’s message， share China’s story， and present to the world a true， multi-dimensional picture of China. （see full text， page 6）

CPAFFC President Li Xiaolin Reviews History

In her speech at the commemorative conference， CPAFFC President Li Xiaolin reviewed the association’s development course over six decades and talked about the important role people-to-people diplomacy played in different historical periods. The CPAFFC had constantly endeavored to enhance understanding and friendship， strengthen exchanges and cooperation and promoting peace and development.

Speaking of the “Chinese Dream” of great national renewal as consistent with the world’s dream of promoting peace and well-being， she said： “The realization of the Chinese Dream needs the understanding and support of people of all countries and the extensive exchanges and cooperation between China and the rest of the world. In the new historical era， we will continue to hold high the banner of ‘friendship， peace， cooperation and development’， continue to innovate the content and methods of our work， play a leading role in promoting people-to-people diplomacy and a key role in public diplomacy， serve as a bridge for local government cooperation between China and other countries， and make new contribution to the great renewal of the Chinese nation， to world peace and development， and to the worthy cause of people-to-people friendship！” （see full text， page 9）

Remarks of International Friends

In her speech， Princess Salote Pilolevu Tuita， President of the Tonga-China Friendship Association， fully affirmed the efforts the CPAFFC had made to develop friendly relations between China and other countries. She said： “True friendship has no boundaries” and expressed the hope that the CPAFFC’s philosophy， belief and actions in upholding this belief， would help the world support peaceful and friendly processes in reducing tensions and solving conflicts.

Former Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama said， Japan caused immense pain to the Chinese people in the 20th century， for which it had expressed deep remorse and was determined to become a nation that would never involve itself again into any form of warfare. He emphasized “friendship” as the only proper way to cure the current political chaos.

Gian Franco Terenzi， former Captain Regent of San Marino and President of the San Marino-China Friendship Association （SMCFA）， said he was much impressed by China’s diplomatic principle that all countries， big or small， should be equal. He said the SMCFA was a mainstream friendly force China could trust in Europe and that China was his second home.

Dr. Jean Ping， Former President of the African Commission， Former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Gabon， recalled the friendship highlights of Sino-African cooperation and expressed his wish that China and Africa would join forces for fostering and securing intercultural dialogue， and for “ensuring fair trade and sustainable development which will greatly enable us to live together in peace， in friendship and in dignity”.

The last speaker， Christopher Nixon Cox， grandson of Former US President Nixon， recalled the latter’s visit to China 42 years earlier and said， China-U.S. “friendship based on understanding and respecting the interests we have and the ties we share constitutes the very foundation for building a new type of bilateral relations between the two great powers of this century”.

CCTV Special Program 60 Years Unforgettable Recorded

A special TV program， 60 Years Unforgettable， commemorating the six decades of people-to-people diplomacy was recorded on May 16. It was produced by the CPAFFC in cooperation with CCTV to show that the Chinese people value friendship and never forget their old friends.

The program consisted of four parts— “Eventful Years”， “In the Same Boat”， “Advance Hand in Hand” and “Sail Towards the Future”. Through video clips， live presentations and art performances， 12 stories of people’s friendship spanning from the revolutionary war years to the present period of deepening reform， were presented. The tales of friendship between the Flying Tiger pilot Glen Beneda and the Chinese people， the Indian doctor Dwarkanath Kotnis who came to help China in its efforts to resist Japanese aggression during WWII， New Zealand friend Rewi Alley who initiated the Gung Ho movement and set up Chinese Industrial Cooperatives， I. V. Arkhipov of Russia who supported China in its socialist construction， the entire family of Pholsena of Laos devoted to promoting China-Laos friendship， the Brazilian lawyer Danilo Santos who spoke up in court in defense of innocent Chinese people， the Matsuyama Ballet performing The White-Haired Girl wholeheartedly for decades， the ping-pong diplomacy that opened the gate for China-US Exchanges and the American friend Sarah Lande’s friendship with Chinese President Xi Jinping renewed after 27 years， Gian Franco Terenzi， former Captain Regent of San Marino who founded the San Marino-China Friendship Association， Former President of the African Commission Dr. Jean Ping who has actively promoted cooperation between China and Africa， and the young Hiria Ottino from the French Polynesia who sailed 16，000 nautical miles across the ocean to China to look for Polynesians’ roots， touched the audience and showed the affinity of people-to-people diplomacy.

CCTV attached great importance to the production of the program. A special team was organized and the preparation and shooting of the video clips lasted for half a year. The program， hosted by famous CCTV presenters， was broadcast on Channel 1 and 4 on May 29 and 31 respectively. These stories of people-to-people diplomacy are told to show that the Chinese people never forget those foreign friends who had sympathized with and supported China’s revolution， reform and development and that the friendship between the people of China and other countries is deep-rooted.