AsiaNet 200943

QINGDAO, China, Jul. 21, 2025 /Xinhua-AsiaNet/--

The "Global Mayors Dialogue · Qingdao" forum, themed "Celebrating Culture and Tourism Together," was held on July 19 in Qingdao, Shandong Province. Eight overseas cities and three Chinese cities jointly explored innovative pathways for cultural tourism exchanges and industrial collaboration. The event was guided by the State Council Information Office and co-hosted by the Qingdao Municipal People's Government and the Information Office of Shandong Provincial People's Government.

Mayors or their representatives from Piraeus, Greece; Sihanoukville, Cambodia; Minsk, Belarus; Regensburg, Germany; Lagos, Nigeria; Shimonoseki, Japan; Dunedin, New Zealand; Daegu, South Korea; as well as China's Qingdao, Yantai, and Weihai, engaged in discussions on critical themes, including "Leveraging Distinctive Advantages to Develop Marine Tourism," "Revitalizing Historical Urban Areas for Cultural Tourism Renaissance," and "Advancing International Tourism to Foster People-to-People Exchanges."

Park Gihwan, representative of the Mayor and director general of the Economic Bureau of Daegu Metropolitan City, ROK, highlighted the three-decade sister-city partnership between Daegu and Qingdao since 1993, spanning economic collaboration, high-level official exchanges, and youth initiatives. He emphasized the symbolic connection between Qingdao's International Beer Festival and Daegu's reputation as the "City of Fried Chicken and Beer," urging both cities to leverage these cultural icons to deepen their ties.

In October 2024, Qingdao and Minsk formalized their sister-city relations, building on the foundation established by the Qingdao-Minsk China-Europe Railway Express launched in 2019. This logistics corridor has significantly bolstered bilateral trade between the two cities. Kukharev Vladimir, chairman of the Minsk City Executive Committee of Belarus, underscored Belarus's keen interest in learning from China's urban governance expertise to optimize urban governance methods and enhance urban resilience and sustainable development.

Positioned as a pivotal global platform for exchange, the Global Mayors Dialogue aims to strengthen international trust, foster mutual learning, and expand cooperation. During the event, the 11 participating cities extended a collective invitation to global travelers, utilizing cultural tourism as a bridge for grassroots diplomacy.

Source: Qingdao Municipal People's Government