Reprint of International Online Press Release: The 4th "Development Strategy Forum for China, Russia, and Central and Eastern European Countries" Held
International Online Report (Reporter Tang Li of China Radio International): The fourth "China, Russia, and Central and Eastern European Countries Development Strategy Forum," co-hosted by the Institute of Marxism Studies of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) and the Confucius Classroom at Vistula University in Poland, was held in Warsaw on the 4th. Over thirty scholars and university professors from social research institutions across China—including Beijing, Shandong, Henan, Tianjin, Zhejiang, Chongqing, Guangxi, and Jiangxi—joined Polish scholars to conduct research and discussion on the theme of "Future Development Trends for China and Poland amid Changes and Realignments in the International Landscape."
This marks the first time the "China, Russia, and Central and Eastern European Countries Development Strategy Forum" has been held in Poland; the previous three sessions from 2014 to 2016 were held in Russia, Belarus, and Bulgaria respectively. The origins of this forum date back to the period following the 18th National Congress [1], when General Secretary Xi Jinping proposed "strengthening external academic propaganda and academic diplomacy," calling on the Chinese academic and ideological-theoretical communities to "go global" [2] to serve the nation’s diplomatic strategy and engage in exchanges with foreign academic peers through scholarly means. One objective is to listen to suggestions from other countries regarding China’s development; the other is to proactively introduce China's economic and social progress of recent years to foreign peers—particularly the underlying reasons for China's economic development, including those related to the system, the path, and ideological theory.
At the seminar, participants expressed their views on issues such as new changes in the international landscape and China’s opening up to the outside world, the Chinese value and global significance of the New Development Philosophy [3], and the prospects for cooperation between China and Central and Eastern European countries under the "Belt and Road" Initiative.
Deng Chundong, Party Committee Secretary and President of the Institute of Marxism Studies of the CASS, stated in an interview with reporters that he hopes this forum will achieve three goals. First is to strengthen exchange and cooperation between China and Poland in the humanities and social sciences. Because we now possess complete confidence in China’s path and culture, but this confidence in Chinese culture in no way precludes us from drawing lessons and learning from the beneficial cultures of other nations and countries. Poland, in particular, has produced figures such as Copernicus, Chopin, and Marie Curie in its cultural and humanistic history who have had a massive influence among the Chinese people. The Chinese academic community is very interested in the culture of the nation and country that produced such great figures and hopes to further expand exchange and cooperation with them.
Second is the hope that the hosting of this forum will serve as an opportunity for the Chinese academic community to make greater contributions to the "Belt and Road" and "16+1 Cooperation" [4] projects. The "Belt and Road" is a major strategy advocated by President Xi Jinping to let China "go global"; it is leading the world economy toward recovery and promoting friendship, cooperation, development, and win-win outcomes among the people of countries along the "Belt and Road." President Xi has proposed "Five Areas of Connectivity" [5], including policy coordination, facilities connectivity, unimpeded trade, financial integration, and people-to-people bonds. As members of the academic community, we can do much work regarding policy coordination and people-to-people bonds. Hosting this forum is actually intended to allow scholars from both sides to propose concepts and policy suggestions for the "Belt and Road" and for deepening "16+1 Cooperation," and even concrete projects. I believe this will play a positive role in our policy coordination and people-to-people bonds.
Third is the hope that this forum will initiate more cooperative dialogue between China and Poland. At the same time, it is hoped that the academic communities and societies of both countries will gain more understanding and cognition of one another. Poland can be described as the first domino to fall in the transition [6] that occurred in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe in the 1980s. What exactly have the dramatic changes of the past thirty years brought to Polish society and its people? How do Polish society and its people actually perceive this result? The Chinese academic community is very curious about this, reflecting on the causes and consequences of these dramatic changes, as well as the current prospects and direction of the country's development, and hopes to understand the situation in this regard. Correspondingly, China initiated an unprecedented reform and opening up, which also led to tremendous changes in Chinese society. The Chinese path has achieved great success, which interests the whole world, including the Polish academic community. Chinese scholars also hope to tell Polish society and the Polish people the truth about China’s adherence to the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics over these years, the specific conditions of deepening reforms in various aspects, the measures and policies of reform, and particularly the results of reform, thereby deepening mutual understanding.
President Deng Chundong also said that the day's meeting achieved good results, marking the first step in exchange and cooperation between the academic and humanities/social science circles of China and Poland. Deng said: "I believe that exchanges between the humanities and social science circles of the two countries will greatly enhance mutual understanding. Many speeches by scholars from both sides, especially those by several Polish professors, introduced the economic, social, and national conditions of Poland to the Chinese scholars, as well as many policies, including the development situation following the evolution of the social system in Poland in the 1980s. This allows us to more profoundly understand the Chinese path, which is of great benefit to our research and our understanding of the Chinese path."
Professor Paweł Bromski, Rector of the University of Mazovia and founder of the Innovation Foundation, believes that holding such a forum is a great opportunity to share respective views. Bromski said: "The 'Belt and Road' is a new phenomenon. I believe much has been said at the political and economic levels, but from a philosophical perspective, there has been relatively little discussion from either the Chinese or Polish sides. I think the philosophical significance of the 'Belt and Road' is also worth discussing. This involves the relationship between major powers and small-to-medium-sized countries. In the world, major powers always occupy a dominant position, but within the framework of the 'Belt and Road,' a new philosophical concept has been formed for the first time, emphasizing that both large and small countries are equal partners in cooperation. This is a brand-new philosophical concept of great importance. If this point is not emphasized, the 'Belt and Road' will be difficult to realize."
Sylwester Szafarz, Chairman of the Polish "16+1" Association, told reporters: "Holding this forum is very meaningful because there is currently still too little information known related to the 'Belt and Road.' We are very pleased that the Polish Prime Minister attended the Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation held in Beijing not long ago, but we believe information in this regard remains scarce. Therefore, this organized forum helps us understand the 'Belt and Road' initiative more deeply."