Lawmakers from China and more than 60 countries gathered in Urumqi, capital of northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, on Sunday for the 2025 Legislators Forum for Friendly Exchanges, aiming to deepen dialogue and promote sustainable global development.
Participants said the gathering comes at a critical moment, as countries seek common ground and new ways to advance sustainable growth.
"The friendly exchange -- and this is the name of the forum -- is extremely needed today, especially among the lawmakers, because the world is changing. We have new economy type and style, new banking system. We are lawmakers, and this forum, what I like the most, is all about law. Law is a rule. When you have rules, the world becomes stable, equal. And I think this is the path to global governance. Thanks to China, we see how it's realizing today," said Mariia Butina, a member of the International Affairs Committee of the Russian State Duma.
In recent days, international lawmakers toured various parts of Xinjiang, seeing first-hand the region's development. They said the trip has offered new ideas, fresh inspiration and opportunities for cooperation across many fields.
"We visited a lavender factory, which seems to have helped tens of thousands of people get out of poverty. I want to bring this experience back to Laos, showing that businesses can do more than just make profits -- they can also help farmers overcome poverty. This is also a better way to enhance the friendship between our two countries," said Sommad Pholsena, vice president of the National Assembly of Laos.
Speaking about what impressed him most during the visit, Joseph Thomas Isaac, Speaker of the House of Assembly of the Commonwealth of Dominica, highlighted Xinjiang's achievements in modern agriculture.
"You have created, I would say, an agricultural miracle. One apple tree can grow somewhere, but how do you create a system to create thousands and thousands of apple trees? So, it takes a deeper form, it takes engineering, it takes technology, but most importantly, it takes the unity of the people. That's what I was most impressed by," he said.
The lawmakers also exchanged experiences on advancing development through the Belt and Road Initiative, ecological conservation, human rights protection and other areas.
Chinese, international lawmakers gather in Xinjiang for friendly exchanges forum
