Turkiye, Sri Lanka host cultural exchange events with Chinese cities

ISTANBUL/COLOMBO — The cultural exchange event "Encounter and Enlighten" recently opened in Istanbul, Turkiye, highlighting exchanges with Nanjing, Jiangsu province, as well as in Colombo, Sri Lanka, where exchanges between the city and Ningbo, Zhejiang province, were featured. The series of events highlights intercity dialogues on topics including mutual learning among civilizations and urban development.

The events were attended by representatives from governments, academia and cultural institutions.

In a video message addressing the Nanjing-Istanbul Urban Civilization Dialogue held on July 2, Frederique Aubert, head of the culture unit at the UNESCO Regional Bureau for Science and Culture in Europe, which is based in Venice, noted that both Nanjing and Istanbul possess rich cultural heritage and that their heritage conservation practices can serve as models for the preservation and sustainable development of historic cities worldwide.

Huriye Merve Gedik, head of the City History, Promotion and Tourism Department of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, said that Istanbul and Nanjing are both historic cities that have flourished along waterways and prospered through the accumulation of civilization.

The dialogue facilitates the two cities in deepening mutual understanding and creates opportunities for practical cooperation, such as preserving ancient city walls and utilizing cultural heritage, Gedik said.

Also on that day, renowned writers, poets and Sinologists from China and Turkiye held in-depth discussions on literary creation and cross-cultural communication in the AI age, and announced a two-way resident-poet project.

In Sri Lanka's capital, Colombo, the event held on July 4 focused on cultural construction amid the development of port cities.

At a themed dialogue with the eastern Chinese city of Ningbo, Mayor of Colombo Vraie Cally Balthazaar told journalists that both port cities are undergoing tremendous transformation and that Colombo looks forward to learning from Ningbo in city planning and the integration of culture and tourism.

At a session devoted to sharing stories of life, culture and connection associated with the two cities, Yasiru Ranaraja, founding director of the Belt and Road Initiative Sri Lanka, recounted the historical visits by ancient Chinese Buddhist monk Faxian and navigator Zheng He to Sri Lanka, highlighting the port city's important role in Sri Lanka-China exchanges since ancient times.

Organizers of the "Encounter and Enlighten" cultural exchange events in Turkiye and Sri Lanka included China's State Council Information Office, Chinese diplomatic missions in the respective countries, and the Chinese city-level governments involved.

XINHUA