Cultural dialogues and cooperation key to Belt and Road Initiative

Vice Minister of Culture Ding Wei [Photo by Zhang Xingjian/chinadaily.com.cn]

Dynamic heritage cooperation, intensified cultural industry cooperation and booming cultural trade between China and countries along the Belt and Road were Vice Minister Ding Wei's key topics during a Ministry of Culture press conference on the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF) on May 11.

Ding Wei said that for centuries, China and countries along the Belt and Road have been trading goods and sharing the best of rich historical and cultural heritage, as cultural cooperation can deepen mutual understanding and friendship, and generate more opportunities to strengthen people-to-people bonds between Belt and Road countries.

Dynamic heritage cooperation

The governmental cooperation in cultural heritage has gained momentum in recent years. In January 2016, witnessed by Chinese President Xi Jinping and King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saudit of Saudi Arabia, the State Administration of Cultural Heritage of China and the Saudi Commission for Tourism and National Heritage signed the Memorandum of Understanding on the Furtherance of Cultural Heritage Exchange and Cooperation.

Also, progress has been made in networking with countries along the Belt and Road, such as Malaysia, Sri Lanka, India, Morocco and Saudi Arabia, to nominate the Maritime Silk Road to the UNESCO World Heritage List.

The Ministry of Culture also encouraged cultural institutions, museums and universities to provide programs on archaeology and heritage restoration in Laos, Myanmar, India, Bangladesh, Mongolia, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Iran and Saudi Arabia.