China Afghanistan and Pakistan joint Forum held in Urumqi Xinjiang

China Afghanistan and Pakistan joint Forum held in Urumqi Xinjiang

BEIJING - China-Afghanistan-Pakistan Cultural Heritage Forum was held in Urumqi, Xinjiang, to strengthen trilateral exchanges in field of cultural heritage protection and expand tripartite cultural cooperation.

More than 20 officials and experts from three countries attended the forum and conducted extensive exchanges and discussions on archaeological research, protection concepts, protection measures and development technologies of cultural heritage, and the development direction of future cultural heritage protection and inheritance, according to a report of CRI on Monday.

Zhang Zhizhong, First Secretary of the Asian Department of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs pointed out in his opening speech that China, Pakistan and Afghanistan had a rich and splendid cultural heritage.

This forum is one of the pragmatic cooperation projects under the dialogue mechanism between the foreign ministers of three countries, he added.

As an important event in the field of cultural exchanges among the three countries and part of the “Asian Cultural Heritage Protection Action”, this forum aims to strengthen the friendly exchanges between the three countries in the field of cultural heritage protection and expand the tripartite cultural cooperation.

In his speech, Xie Bing, Secretary of the Party Committee of the Chinese Cultural Heritage Research Institute, said that China’s cultural heritage was diverse and had achieved successes in the protection and management of cultural heritage, theoretical research on conservation and restoration, research and development of materials and processes, and the construction of a protection standard system.

He hoped to use this forum to share experiences with scholars in Afghanistan and Pakistan, discuss future exchanges and cooperation, and strength to solving key issues in the protection and use of Asian cultural heritage.

Archaeological expert Rashik Amer of Pakistan’s National Department of Historical and Cultural Heritage pointed out in his speech that as the home of ancient civilizations in the world, all three countries had a large number of historic sites and cultural heritages, and they were also facing their own challenges in the protection of cultural heritage.

The representative from Afghanistan’s National Museum of the Ministry of Information and Culture said that Afghanistan was an important hub on the Silk Road. It has experienced different dynasties in history, leaving a brilliant and rich cultural heritage.

However, in recent years, due to the war, many cultural sites have been damaged, a large number of precious cultural resources have been lost, and a large number of collections have been damaged.

Therefore, Afghanistan hopes to receive help from other countries, including China and Pakistan, and hopes that the forum will have a positive impact on the trilateral cooperation in the protection of cultural relics.

The forum provided a platform for scholars and experts from the three countries, and provided an opportunity for everyone to share their views and promote cultural cooperation between the three countries.

The forum was co-sponsored by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the State Administration of Cultural Relics, and co-organized by the China Cultural Heritage Research Institute, the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Cultural Relics Bureau, the Foreign Affairs Office of the People’s Government of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, and the Foreign Affairs Office of Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps.