Mayors meet to promote friendship along the Silk Road

A meeting of mayors from cities along the Silk Road will be held in Xi'an, capital of Shaanxi province and the starting point of the historic route, from May 28 to 30.

Co-sponsored by the National Tourism Administration, the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries and the Shaanxi provincial government, and hosted by Xi'an municipal government, the international conference aims to promote friendship from generation to generation and create prosperity among cities along the Silk Road.

The meeting will be attended by more than 100 mayors and tourism, culture and foreign affairs officials from 20 cities in 12 countries along the Silk Road, as well as officials from the UN World Tourism Organization and the secretariat of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, said Zhang Yongke, director of Xi'an Tourism Bureau.

The meeting, the first of its kind in Xi'an, will have a far-reaching impact, said Zhang.

A declaration will be issued by the mayors at the meeting, while a number of documents are expected to be signed, dealing with tourism, cultural, education, economic and scientific cooperation among the Silk Road cities

The ancient Silk Road started at Chang'an (Xi'an's former name), the capital of the Western Han Dynasty (206 BC-AD 24). It was a cultural exchange and trading route from ancient China to the Roman Empire.