Cui Li, vice-president of the Good-Neighborliness, Friendship and Cooperation Commission (GNFCC) of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), met with a delegation of Indian scholars visiting China in Beijing on Sept 19.

Extending a welcome to the delegation, Cui said China and India, both neighboring countries, ancient civilizations, developing nations, emerging market economies, and members of BRICS and the SCO, share common aspirations for national prosperity and development and the happiness of their people. Cui noted that at this year's SCO Summit in Astana, President Xi Jinping announced that China would take the rotating presidency of the organization for 2024-2025, called for the building of a common home featuring solidarity and mutual trust, peace and tranquility, prosperity and development, good-neighborliness and friendship, as well as fairness and justice, and proposed that 2025 be designated as the SCO Year of Sustainable Development. Xi's speech has received enthusiastic responses from various countries, she added.

China plans to host over 100 activities focused on sustainable development and highlighting "SCO on the move", Cui said, adding that the GNFCC will fully leverage its role as a non-official organization to strengthen exchanges with similar organizations in all countries, including India, in a bid to work together to build a bright future for the SCO family.

Cui noted that, in recent years, various sectors in India have promoted people-to-people exchanges within the SCO framework. China fully agreed with the Indian experts' suggestion on enhancing mutual learning among civilizations, and hoped that exchanges between scholars from the two countries will become a catalyst for deepening good-neighborliness, mutual understanding and mutually beneficial cooperation, and will continuously consolidate the public support for bilateral cooperation, she said.

The Indian delegation expressed gratitude to the Chinese side for introducing the practice of promoting people-to-people diplomacy within the SCO framework, saying that the congratulatory letters sent by President Xi to the Green Development Forum of SCO Countries and the SCO Forum on Women demonstrate China's high regard for the development of the SCO.

They agreed that close people-to-people exchanges and cooperation will enhance coordination among countries and create conditions for common development.

Noting that people-to-people exchanges are crucial for promoting mutual understanding among people, the Indian side lauded the GNFCC's role in organizing activities related to scientific and technological innovation, poverty reduction, the digital economy and youth, which have been welcomed by all parties.

The Indian side also expressed hope for more experience sharing with China in areas such as traditional medicine, the digital economy, vocational education, and film and television. They said they wanted to share stories of the two countries and jointly contribute to the well-being of both peoples.

Scholars from various Indian think tanks and academic institutions, including the Vivekananda International Foundation, Institute of China Studies, and Jawaharlal Nehru University, attended the meeting.