Euro-China forum boosts cultural dialogue

BOLOGNA, Italy - Chinese and European scholars wrapped up their two-day discussion Thursday on the need for China and Europe to learn more about each other.

The 10th Euro-China Forum, opened on Wednesday in the city of Bologna, was aimed at forging a cultural partnership that "goes beyond ever-varying trade, business or political interests", according to the meetings' organizers.

Europe is China's largest trading partner. It can also be China's special interlocutor thanks to the common complexity and millenary history, said Romano Prodi, former Italian prime minister, in an interview with Xinhua.

This culture-based dialogue is both fundamental for China to learn about Europe's "great political experience" and for Europe to get acquainted with China's extraordinary development, he said.

"Except for the latest two centuries, China has always been a leading power in the world," Prodi said, adding that renowned modernization achievements since the reform and opening-up drive in the late 1970s have led China to become the world's second largest economy on the path of its renaissance.

In fact, the Chinese renaissance is a catalyst for globalization. "It also enlarges the global village by opening new economic, political, diplomatic, intellectual and artistic horizons," said David Gosset, director of the Academia Sinica Europaea, in the forum's opening remarks.

"As six centuries ago the Italian renaissance reaffirmed man's central position and opened a period of progress, creativity and innovation for the European continent, the Chinese renaissance can signal a 21st century world humanistic movement," the expert added.

He also said though the mutual attraction between China and Europe is  "proportionate with the depth of these two ancient civilizations",  economic, political and strategic relations between the two are not commensurate with their reciprocal appreciation.

With culture being the keystone of their bilateral ties, the two Eurasian civilizations can enjoy a stable and meaningful cooperation, Gosset said.

The annual forum included plenary sessions and workshops that focused on the cooperation between China and Italy in agriculture, food security, education, media and global governance.