On the morning of September 25, 2023, a group composed of scholars from Belt and Road countries visited Peking University (PKU). PKU President Gong Qihuang, Vice President Wang Bo and Vice President Ning Qi met with the guests in the VIP room of Yingjie Overseas Exchange Center. The director of the Office of International Relations, Li Yun, and deputy directors of the Institute of Area Studies (IAS) Zhai Kun, Zan Tao, Zhang Yongle and others also attended the meeting.
Gong Qihuang extended a warm welcome to the scholars group and thanked them for visiting PKUon the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). Wang Bo said that PKU would actively expand exchanges and cooperation with universities and scientific research institutions in Belt and Road countries and work together to promote the construction of an educational community. Ning Qi introduced PKU’s area studies and related fields and said that the university would continue to focus on research on Central Asia and Russia and work with other countries to jointly promote the construction of the BRI and related academic research.
The members of the BRI scholars group came from universities and scientific research institutions in Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Pakistan. They all expressed their eagerness to strengthen cooperation with PKU. Abdraeva Aigul, rector of Kyrgyz State University, said that since the BRI was proposed, Kyrgyzstan has carried out a variety of Chinese training activities and Chinese cultural research projects. She said she looked forward to further strengthening cooperation with PKU in the future, jointly promoting national and regional scientific research and academic development and making positive contributions to the construction of the BRI. Tirdea Bogdat, a member of the Socialist Party of Moldova and deputy chairman of the Parliamentary Committee on Foreign Affairs and European Integration, praised the multicultural exchange opportunities brought by the BRI. He said that this visit deepened his understanding of China and PKU and laid a solid foundation for future cooperation between the two parties.
After the meeting, the scholars group had in-depth exchanges and discussions with professors and researchers from the IAS. Koichumanova Cholpon (a professor at Kyrgyz State University), Seidumanov Serik (director of the Institute for Philosophy, Political Science and Religion Studies), Marine Ioseliani (rector of the Georgian Institute of Public Affairs), Vlasov Evgenii (vice president for International Relations at Far Eastern Federal University) and others spoke one after the other, introducing the basic situation of their institutions and expressing their desire to establish and strengthen cooperation with IAS in the fields of academic research, student training, teacher–student exchanges and other fields.
Zan Tao, deputy director of IAS, said that the visit of the scholars group was of great significance to the development of IAS and the promotion of cooperation with relevant parties. The IAS would be responsible for the implementation of BRI and the academic mission of enhancing mutual understanding and friendship with relevant countries, he said.
Zhang Yongle, deputy director of IAS, said that the visit of the scholar group laid a good foundation for cooperation between PKU and relevant parties, and that IAS would work hard to promote the implementation of cooperative projects.
