China and ASEAN nations pledge deeper cooperation on cultural heritage protection at a four-day dialogue in Dunhuang, marking the fifth anniversary of their strategic partnership.
China and Southeast Asian nations pledged to deepen cooperation in protecting cultural heritage sites, as roughly 150 delegates gathered in Dunhuang, China for a four-day dialogue marking the fifth anniversary of the China-ASEAN comprehensive strategic partnership.
The China-ASEAN Cultural Heritage Dialogue, held from July 2 to 5 under the theme “Enduring Heritage, Shared Beauty for All,” drew professionals in heritage protection, archaeology, digital technology, cultural industry, think tanks, youth representatives and media from Vietnam, Malaysia, Indonesia, Cambodia and the Philippines.
China International Communications Group vice president Yu Yingfu said cultural heritage forms an important link between history and the future and increasingly serves as a foundation for strengthening mutual understanding between China and ASEAN. He urged both sides to build consensus on cooperation, establish a common basis for heritage protection, stimulate innovation and expand opportunities for industrial integration, while encouraging young people to drive cultural exchange.
Publicity Department of the CCP Gansu Provincial Committee deputy director-general Xue Ning called the event “a vivid practice of the Global Civilization Initiative” and said it offers an important platform for China and ASEAN to deepen practical cooperation in cultural and people-to-people exchanges.
Southeast Asian Cultural Heritage Alliance chairperson and National Commission for Culture and the Arts commissioner Ivan Anthony Henares said cultural heritage is shaped when different peoples, beliefs and traditions meet across time and space. He noted that China and Southeast Asian nations accumulated shared cultural heritage through maritime trade in earlier centuries and said ASEAN members can learn from China’s experience in scientific protection, digital innovation and the interpretation of heritage sites such as Dunhuang.
Philippine National Museum Maritime and Underwater Cultural Heritage Division curator Bobby Orillaneda also attended the forum.
Delegates exchanged practices in digital protection, industrial integration and innovation during the dialogue. Organizers also held a “China-ASEAN cultural and museum tour” from July 2 to 5, bringing youth, students, journalists and online influencers from China and ASEAN to visit Dunhuang’s cultural and museum institutions and cultural companies to observe preservation, digital revitalization and industrial transformation efforts firsthand.
The dialogue series began in 2024, with previous sessions held in Guangxi and Gansu in China and in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Former UNESCO director-general Irina Bokova has lauded the initiative as an important platform to deepen friendship among countries and strengthen mutual understanding.