On December 10, the First Suzhou Silk Road Forum was held in the city of Suzhou. This forum was hosted by Renmin University of China (Suzhou Campus) and co-organized by the Silk Road School of Renmin University of China and the Chongyang Institute for Financial Studies of Renmin University of China under the guidance of the China Public Diplomacy Association. The theme of this forum is “The Fourteenth Five-Year Plan and the High-Quality Development of the Belt and Road Initiative”. Wu Hailong, president of the China Public Diplomacy Association, was invited to the opening ceremony and deliver a keynote speech. Former Slovenian President Danilo Turk and former Egyptian Prime Minister Essam Sharaf delivered speeches respectively.

President Wu stated that to build a high-quality “Belt and Road”, it is necessary to promote high-quality public diplomacy. Governments, non-governmental organizations, enterprises, think tanks, universities and other social entities should continuously increase their awareness of public diplomacy, innovate in public diplomacy methods, enrich the connotation of public diplomacy in an effort to tell the stories of China and its cooperation with foreign countries and promote friendship of the peoples of China and countries along the “Belt and Road”, creating a friendly external environment for the high-quality development of the “Belt and Road”.

President Wu also stated that since the beginning of this year, CPDA has organized several influential and meaningful activities through various forms, which achieved positive results and made positive contributions in deepening the understanding and recognition of China and the “Belt and Road” initiative for the peoples of the countries along the “Belt and Road”.