TASHKENT, July 4. /Dunyo IA/. The Public Diplomacy Forum and the SCO Sister Cities Forum are being held from July 3 to 5 in the city of Shenyang, Liaoning Province, China, reports Dunyo IA correspondent.

The events are organized by the Chinese Committee on Good-Neighbourliness, Friendship and Cooperation of the SCO, the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC), and the People’s Government of Liaoning Province.

Nearly 400 representatives from SCO member states are taking part in the forums under the theme "Deepening People-to-People Friendship and Advancing Sustainable Development."

Director of the SCO Public Diplomacy Centre in Tashkent, Kabuljon Sabirov, participated in the session titled "Sister Cities Relations and Trade and Economic Cooperation," as well as in the Second International Conference on Trade and Economic Cooperation of Sister Cities of Shenyang.

In his remarks, he emphasized the vital role of public diplomacy as an essential component of bilateral and multilateral interstate relations.

The program also includes a youth sub-forum on scientific and technological innovation and advanced manufacturing, and a sub-forum dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the Victory in the Chinese People’s War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the Victory in the Second World War.

Forum participants are exchanging experiences, discussing ways to enhance exchanges between sister cities, visiting exhibitions of scientific and technological innovations and advanced industries, exploring achievements of SCO countries, and learning about the operations of local enterprises and landmarks in Shenyang.

The forum is expected to result in the adoption of the Consensus on Sustainable Development of Public Diplomacy of SCO Countries and the Shenyang Initiative. A number of agreements are also set to be signed between sister cities and friendly organizations, including in the field of trade and economic cooperation.

A Memorandum of Cooperation is anticipated to be signed between the SCO Public Diplomacy Centre in Tashkent and the Chinese People’s Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) — a leading institution in China’s public diplomacy.