On 16 November 2015, at the invitation of China International Culture Association (CICA), Mr. Sun Jianhua, Deputy Director of Education, Culture and Tourism Division (ECTD), on behalf of ASEAN-China Centre (ACC), participated in the launching ceremony of the Thailand-China Cultural Tourism Motorcade Tour in Altay City in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China. Officials attending the event included Mr. Zhang Aiping, Vice President of CICA, Mr. Sugree Sithivanich, Deputy Governor for Marketing Communications of the Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT), Mme. Yao Xiaojun, Deputy Secretary-General and Mr. Muhtar Mahsut, Director-General of Cultural Department of the People’s Government of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region, Mr. Wang Chen, Assistant Director of the Bureau for External Cultural Relations of the Ministry of Culture, and representatives of tourism and media agencies from both ASEAN and China and around 200 other invited guests and members of the local communities.
The motorcade tour, co-hosted by CICA and TAT and organized by China Association of Automobile Culture, was aimed at promoting the “Belt and Road” initiative proposed by China, in conjunction with the celebrations on the 40th anniversary of Thailand-China diplomatic relations, the 60th Birthday Anniversary of HRH Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of the Kingdom of Thailand and the 55th anniversary of the founding of the Tourism Authority of Thailand. The 37-day motorcade tour would travel through Xinjiang, Gansu, Shaanxi, Shanxi and Yunnan Provinces and autonomous regions along the Silk Road in China, and enter Thailand via Chiang Rai in the north and southward through many major cities in the country, with its final destination in Bangkok. A celebration for the completion of the Motorcade Tour would be held in the China Culture Centre in Bangkok on 14 December 2015. Journalists from Xinhua News Agency, China Culture Daily, Thai Public Broadcasting Service, Thai TV Color Channel 3, Thai Nature Explorer and Bangkok Post had joined the motorcade to make media coverage throughout the tour.
Mr. Zhang Aiping said in his opening address that the motorcade tour was organized and guided by the governments and participated by non-government institutions of both countries, in efforts to promote people-to-people relations by exploring the cultural tourism markets. The project would not only promote the public understanding of the “Belt and Road” initiative by annotating the spirit of equality, mutual benefit and win-win cooperation with new means of collaboration and publicity, but also enhance mutual understanding and appreciation of the history and culture of both countries to benefit the people of both sides by exploring the potentials in cultural tourism markets and their tourist resources. Mr. Sithivanich responded by saying that the Tourism Authority of Thailand had been hosting Chinese art groups of about 200 people from different parts of China in every Spring Festival successively for the past 11 years, which underlined the great importance that the Royal Thai Government had attached to cultural exchanges between the two countries. He hoped the two sides would continue their joint efforts to upgrade Thailand-China cultural tourism motorcade tour, hence contributing to the friendly cooperation between Thailand and China.
Mr. Sun Jianhua briefed the participants on ACC’s relentless effort to promote functional cooperation in accordance to its mandates and had an in-depth exchange of views on ASEAN-China cultural exchanges and cooperation with the officials. He noted that 2016 would mark the 25th anniversary of ASEAN-China dialogue relations and ACC would enhance connections and collaborations with relevant parties in efforts to further promote pragmatic cooperation in the areas of culture and tourism between ASEAN and China.
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