The 13th Beijing Xiangshan Forum will bring defense officials, military leaders and scholars to Beijing from Sept 15 to 17 for discussions on strategic stability, regional conflicts, Asia-Pacific security and the role of developing countries in global governance.
The forum, to be held at the Beijing International Convention Center, is themed "Build Consensus on Stability, Advance Security Governance Together."
It will include four plenary sessions and eight parallel seminars, with the main sessions focusing on the international order and strategic stability, pathways to resolving regional conflicts, security and risks in the Asia-Pacific, and the role and vision of developing countries.
Organizers said the forum will uphold the principles of equality, openness, inclusiveness and mutual learning, seeking to build consensus on stability and promote security governance.
"The forum will promote China's vision of a global community with a shared future and its four global initiatives on development, security, civilization and governance, while making China's voice heard and presenting its proposals. It will also advocate political solutions to pressing security issues and create more opportunities for candid dialogue among parties to conflicts. At the same time, it will listen closely to developing countries and work with nations around the world to build consensus, strengthen cooperation and advance a fair and equitable global governance system," said Li Fei, director of the Office of the China Association for Military Science.
The forum will invite leaders of defense departments and armed forces, heads of international and regional organizations, and prominent scholars from around the world. The fourth China-Africa Peace and Security Forum will be held alongside the event.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Beijing Xiangshan Forum. The China Association for Military Science said the forum has developed into an important platform for equal-footed dialogue on international security and defense issues, and will continue to contribute to regional stability, world peace and development.
Beijing Xiangshan Forum to focus on global security challenges
The 26th China International Fair for Investment and Trade (CIFIT) opened in the coastal city of Xiamen in east China's Fujian Province on Tuesday, drawing international exhibitors and delegations to connect global investors with key Chinese markets.
The four-day fair has brought together over 1,200 government agencies and business delegations from 129 countries and regions, which includes 48 of the world's top 50 economies by GDP, while 30 international organizations are also participating.
This year's event marks the biggest ever edition of the long-running trade fair, with the total exhibition space expanding to some 200,000 square meters. It also features 14 specialized exhibition zones, showcasing investment opportunities in various promising sectors including China's "new quality productive forces", an economic strategy which stresses high-tech innovation as a new growth driver, as well as the "Silk Road Maritime" initiative, which looks to resurrect ancient sea trading routes.
Addressing the opening ceremony, Zhou Zuyi, secretary of the Fujian Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China, said Fujian will step up efforts to establish new mechanisms for a more open economy.
"We will keep expanding institutional opening-up and actively aligning with high-standard global trade rules. We're seizing the opportunity from the pilot program to expand services trade. We're also upgrading our free trade zones, focusing on tech innovation, green development, and digital economy. All to build a more open economy, faster," Zhou said.
This year's edition has also introduced a "dual guest countries of honor" mechanism for the first time, with Finland and Saudi Arabia jointly assuming the role. Two Chinese guest provinces have also been named, with the southern Guangdong and the northwestern Qinghai Province given the honor. The fair is structured around three core thematic sections, namely "Invest in China," "China's Outbound Investment," and "International Investment," and will also see more than 40 key investment promotion events, along with nearly 100 supporting activities being held.
Speaking at the opening ceremony, Pedro Manuel Moreno, the Acting Secretary General of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), emphasized that increasing investment in key strategic fields is essential, saying the trade fair offers a valuable platform for exchanges.
"Strategic sectors, like AI, semiconductors, critical minerals, or clean energy now account for almost half of the value of all new investment projects. This is why I believe gatherings like CIFIT matter more than ever, because the central challenge today is no longer only to mobilize more capital. It is to connect capital to the right projects, in the right places," he said.
First launched in 1997, the CIFIT, organized by the Chinese Ministry of Commerce, has become an important platform for boosting investment and facilitating global development.
Global investors, business leaders gather in Xiamen for int'l investment, trade fair
