PR100529

WENZHOU, China, Nov. 30, 2023 /Xinhua-AsiaNet/--

The vast sea is boundless, but for hundreds of years, countless people's

exploration across the ocean has presented a more complete and fuller world to

the public, and has further promoted global economic, trade and cultural

exchanges.

During the maritime exchanges between the East and the West, the Maritime Silk

Road was born, which not only amazed the West with the spices, silk and

porcelain from the East, but also witnessed the mutual learning of

civilizations facilitated by the Italian missionary Matteo Ricci and other

westerners who crossed the sea to explore the East.

On Oct. 3, 2013, China proposed to jointly build the 21st Century Maritime Silk

Road. Together with the Silk Road Economic Belt proposed on Sept. 7 of the same

year, they constitute the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), which has renewed the

splendid history of economic, trade and cultural exchanges between the East and

the West.

To mark the tenth anniversary of the BRI, the 2023 Mayors Exchange Conference

on Maritime Silk Road City Influence was held from Nov. 24 to Nov. 25 in

southeast China's coastal city Wenzhou, another high-level international

gathering to promote communication and cooperation of BRI countries after the

third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation.  

Nearly 400 guests, including municipal officials, experts and scholars from 15

countries of Asia, Europe, Africa and America, gathered in Wenzhou, an

important Maritime Silk Road hub, according to the Executive Committee. They

held roundtable discussions on building a harmonious and symbiotic business

system and promoting the culture heritage of the Maritime Silk Road in a bid to

tap the opportunities for cooperation and development of the trade route.

The Maritime Silk Road is born of openness and prospers from exchanges. The

cities along the trade route have a distinctive pioneering spirit, of which

Wenzhou is a typical representative. Since ancient times, the wealthy coastal

city has played an important role on boosting trade and cultural ties with its

global reach, commercial vitality, cultural legacy and active exchanges.

In Jiangxin Islet in the middle reaches of Oujiang River in the north of

Wenzhou, two ancient pagodas built in Tang Dynasty and Song Dynasty

respectively stand in the islet's east and west. For more than 1,000 years,

they have been known as the oldest lighthouses on the Maritime Silk Road.

Across the river, Song Dynasty docks, sunken ships and tons of porcelain

fragments and the ruins of Shuomen Ou Ancient City were unearthed from the site

of Shuomen Ancient Port in Wenzhou, demonstrating the prosperity and continuity

of the ancient Maritime Silk Road.

In the 13th century, Chinese envoy Zhou Daguan, a Wenzhou local, visited

Cambodia during the Angkor period. He not only brought Chinese culture to

Cambodia, but also wrote A record of Cambodia, which was a vivid account of the

friendly exchanges between the Chinese and Cambodian people at that time. It's

the only historical material in the world that reflects the prosperity of the

Angkor Dynasty.

"I believe that Mr. Zhou Daguan's spirit can inspire all of us - whether

artists, historians, or friends from all walks of life - to explore the

unknown, to carry on our cultural legacies, and to forge closer international

friendships," said Cambodian Prince Sisowath Tesso.

Through the ages, Wenzhou remains an influential hub along the Maritime Silk

Road, contributing a unique role in facilitating peer city communication and

cooperation.

In recent years, Wenzhou Port's foreign trade container business has developed

rapidly, with an expanding foreign trade route network and growing route

service capacity. The port's near-ocean routes can reach Russia, South Korea,

the Philippines and other countries, and has 15 foreign trade routes in total.

In 2018, Wenzhou set up a high-level official team to promote economic and

trade exchanges between Wenzhou and the BRI countries and regions. So far, the

city's trade volume with the BRI countries has exceeded 640 billion yuan. In

the past decade, Wenzhou's trade with the BRI countries surged from 53.33

billion yuan to 147.05 billion yuan.

Nurtured by the pioneering spirit of the Maritime Silk Road, open-minded

Wenzhou people have been seizing the opportunities of promoting the

high-quality development of the BRI and higher-level opening-up.

Now Wenzhou has 36 sister cities and friendly exchange cities worldwide, and

380,000 Wenzhou people are living and working in nearly 60 BRI countries.

Multinational private Wenzhou firms like Tsingshan Holding Group have ventured

overseas to expand foothold in BRI countries, which have set up the largest

number of state-level overseas economic and trade parks for a prefecture-level

city.

In addition to establishing an exchange platform, the two-day event also

unveiled a report on the influence of China's Maritime Silk Road cities and the

top 10 most influential Chinese Maritime Silk Road cities. A cooperation

initiative on the innovative development of Maritime Silk Road cities was

jointly launched, opening a new chapter for peer city communication and

cooperation.

The conference's host city Wenzhou, with its people playing important roles in

facilitating cross-border economic and cultural exchanges as well as the

excavation of the Maritime Silk Road landmark heritage Shuomen ancient port,

posts high rankings in several indices and made into the shortlist.

The joint development of the BRI pursues development, advocates win-win

results, and delivers hope. Wenzhou will seek maximized integration into this

road of peace, prosperity, openness, innovation, and civilization, said Wenzhou

mayor Zhang Zhenfeng.

"We sincerely hope to take this conference as an opportunity to cooperate

pragmatically and work together for win-win results by means of city and people

exchanges to inject new impetus into promoting the high-quality development of

the BRI," Zhang added.

Source: Wenzhou Executive Committee of the 2023 Mayors Exchange Conference on

Maritime Silk Road City Influence