STORY: Xi's vision on world civilizations
SHOOTING TIME: Recent footage and file
DATELINE: April 2, 2024
LENGTH: 0:05:35
LOCATION: Athens; CHONGQING, China
CATEGORY: POLITICS/CULTURE

SHOTLIST:
1. various of Athens
2. SOUNDBITE 1 (Greek): PROKOPIS PAVLOPOULOS, Former Greek President
3. SOUNDBITE 2 (English): STELIOS VIRVIDAKIS, President of the Steering Committee of the Center of Chinese and Greek Ancient Civilizations
4. SOUNDBITE 3 (Chinese): CUI YANQIANG, Chinese Director of the Center of Chinese and Greek Civilizations
5. SOUNDBITE 4 (English): PARASKEVI POULI, Principal application scientist, IESL-FORTH
6. SOUNDBITE 5 (English): DEMETRIOS ANGLOS, Associated researcher, IESL-FORTH
7. SOUNDBITE 6 (English): DEMETRIOS ANGLOS, Associated researcher, IESL-FORTH

STORYLINE:

On a sunny morning in November 2019, the Acropolis Museum in Athens welcomed a distinguished group of visitors -- Prokopis Pavlopoulos, then president of Greece, and his guests, Chinese President Xi Jinping and his wife Peng Liyuan.

In November 2019,
Chinese President Xi Jinping
and his wife Peng Liyuan
visited the Acropolis Museum,
accompanied by then Greek President
Prokopis Pavlopoulos and his wife

There they stopped in front of a basso-relievo dated circa 460 B.C. -- the "Mourning Athena."

"She is thinking what wars are truly for," Xi told Pavlopoulos.

He went on to cite a Chinese proverb that goes in the same vein of advocating peace: the true art of war is the art of stopping wars.

Xi said the tour had deepened his understanding of ancient Greek civilization.

He firmly believes that different civilizations need to engage in dialogue and exchanges on an equal footing to facilitate mutual learning.

SOUNDBITE 1 (Greek): PROKOPIS PAVLOPOULOS, Former Greek President
"President Xi and I discussed these (human civilizations) in Beijing and Athens and came to a common view.
The best thing about the dialogue of civilizations between Greece and China is that neither country imposes its own culture on the other.
We respect equality among different civilizations.
In today's troubled times, we can demonstrate the value of peace through dialogue."

During the visit to Greece in 2019, President Xi also proposed that the two countries should set an example of cultural exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations.

Inspired by Xi's proposal, the Center of Chinese and Greek Ancient Civilizations was inaugurated in Athens in February 2023 after three years of preparation.

This center aims to promote bilateral exchanges of scholars and students to advance the study of the two civilizations.

In the same month, President Xi replied to a letter from several Greek scholars, while also extending congratulations on the founding of the center.

SOUNDBITE 2 (English): STELIOS VIRVIDAKIS, President of the Steering Committee of the Center of Chinese and Greek Ancient Civilizations
"We knew that President Xi is interested in history, archeology, culture. He has emphasized the fact that cultures should look at their past, their history, great civilizations should approach each other. He congratulated us and then he also encouraged us to continue."

SOUNDBITE 3 (Chinese): CUI YANQIANG, Chinese Director of the Center of Chinese and Greek Civilizations
"The center is dedicated to the exchange and mutual learning of civilizations. It facilitates the two-way flow of students and scholars to deepen the people-to-people bond between China and Greece, and between China and Europe."

Over the years, China and Greece have engaged in diversified cultural exchanges and collaborated to promote the preservation of cultural heritages.

In Sept. 2023, Greek personnel
in the cultural sector visited Hangzhou, China.
They explored the Liangzhu ancient city
ruins park and the Liangzhu Museum,
and participated in the "Liangzhu and the World -
Liangzhu ancient city & Acropolis of Athens:
Dialogue between Chinese and Greek civilizations."

In 2021, the two countries inaugurated the China-Greece Belt and Road Joint Laboratory on Cultural Heritage Conservation Technology.

SOUNDBITE 4 (English): PARASKEVI POULI, Principal application scientist, IESL-FORTH
"This is a collaboration between 11 institutes from Greece and China. It is a multidisciplinary international cooperation platform which aims to exchange knowledge, experience, technology towards the study, understanding and conservation of our mutual cultural heritage."

Under the lab, professionals from both countries communicate their experience in laser analysis and laser cleaning of cultural heritage objects to better protect cultural relics.

Through such communication, scientists and experts have not only learned from each other, but also better understood each other's culture and civilization.

SOUNDBITE 5 (English): DEMETRIOS ANGLOS, Associated researcher, IESL-FORTH
"The joint lab plays a key role in promoting exchanges and enhancing mutual understanding."

"A single flower does not make spring, while one hundred flowers in full blossom bring spring to the garden."

This old Chinese saying was quoted by President Xi at the CPC in Dialogue with World Political Parties High-Level Meeting in March 2023.

In March 2023,
Xi attended the Communist Party
of China (CPC) in Dialogue
with World Political Parties High-Level Meeting
via video link and delivered a keynote address

During the address, Xi proposed the Global Civilization Initiative.

Under the initiative, he called for respect for diversity of civilizations, advocating the common values of humanity, highly valuing the inheritance and innovation of civilizations, and jointly advocating robust international people-to-people exchanges and cooperation.

SOUNDBITE 6 (English): DEMETRIOS ANGLOS, Associated researcher, IESL-FORTH
"This (Global Civilization Initiative) is indeed a very wise proposal.
People-to-people contact, collaboration, interaction, this is very important to establish good bridges.
Through this interaction, we manage to understand each other and also get to realize the importance of civilization diversity. I think it is greatly beneficial to both sides, it is greatly beneficial to the world."

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Athens and Chongqing, China.
(XHTV)