Sixth Friendship Forum Held in Guizhou

he Sixth Friendship Forum of the American and Oceanian region， sponsored by the CPAFFC and organized by the Guizhou Provincial People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries， was held in the provincial capital of Guiyang from September 1 to 5. Tongan Princess Salote Pilolevu Tuita and Jamaican Ambassador to China Ralph Thomas took part among 50 representatives of friendship-with-China organizations from the United States， Canada， Australia， New Zealand， Tonga， Vanuatu， Trinidad and Tobago， and Jamaica， as well as about 40 Chinese representatives from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs， relevant departments of Guizhou and Sichuan， and experts from Tsinghua University.

Hu Sishe， Vice President of the CPAFFC， Meng Qiliang， Deputy Governor of Guizhou and Cao Xiangnong， Deputy Director General of the Department of North American and Oceanian Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs were among the speakers at the opening session.

Hu said the CPAFFC had celebrated its 60th anniversary with friends from other countries in May. Chinese President Xi Jinping attended the commemorative meeting and made an important speech， in which he said， “Friendship among peoples is the foundation for world peace and development， as well as a precondition for win-win cooperation. Trust and equality are the prerequisite of mutually beneficial cooperation.”

The holding of the Friendship Forum was one of the concrete steps to enhance such friendship， Hu stressed.

Deputy Governor Meng Qiliang said that it was of great significance to hold the forum in Guiyang， for it not only served to further cement ties between the friendship organizations of China and the American and Oceanian region， but also provided an important opportunity for Guizhou to establish contact and deepen understanding with the participating countries， and helped lay the foundation for future exchanges and cooperation.

Giving a high appraisal to the forum， Cao Xiangnong said that， in the past decade， the forum， by adhering to its purpose of friendly cooperation for common development， had achieved many practical results. It had boosted friendly relations between China and countries in this region and become a brand activity of China in carrying out people-to-people friendship work.

The Friendship Forum was set up in 2004 by the CPAFFC with the aim of increasing inter-regional exchanges among friendship organizations in the American and Oceanian region， and the 2014 meeting was the sixth. It has grown in scale and influence and has become a platform for regular friendly exchanges， becoming a bridge and contributing to deepened friendship and safeguarding world peace.

The theme of the current forum was “Green Life， Evergreen Friendship”. The participants spoke on such topics as local special industries， utilization of multi-culture resources， development of sustainable friendly exchanges， etc.

Princess Pilolevu Tuita said this reflected the present international situation. She hoped that the participants would do their bit to the strengthening of friendly exchanges and cooperation between China and the American and Oceanian region and to the building of a more beautiful homeland—the Earth.

Participants from the friendship organizations of different countries shared their thoughts and experiences in friendship work and their suggestions for future cooperation.

The CPAFFC invited Li Zhaojie， professor of the Law School， Tsinghua University， to give a lecture on the South China Sea. Professor Li made a detailed introduction to the historical background of China’s jurisdiction， the internal and external factors contributing to present disputes and China’s foreign policy. He answered audience questions on the geopolitics of the South China Sea， cooperation in exploration and development of the surrounding countries， regional air routes， etc.

The CPAFFC issued certificate of honor to the volunteers sent to the United States， Fiji and Guatemala on friendship missions and conferred the title of CPAFFC Friendship Volunteer on them in recognition of their contribution to consolidating friendship with China and promoting the advancement of social undertakings in the recipient countries.