On December 6, Chinese Vice Premier Liu Yandong and Jeremy Hunt, UK Secretary of State for Health co-chaired the 4th Meeting of China-UK High-Level People-to-People Dialogue in Shanghai as the chairs of both sides.

As an event during the meeting, the 6th China-UK Young Leaders Roundtable was held in Shanghai from December 6 to 7.

As a dialogue program between the All-China Youth Federation (ACYF) and the China-Britain Business Council, the roundtable brings together Chinese and British young leaders from all walks of life, including politicians, to enhance the understanding and friendship between Chinese and British young leaders, and promote the two sides to build consensus and establish cooperative relations. This year, more than 30 young political, business and academic leaders from China and the UK, including Wang Hongyan, Vice Chairman of ACYF; Ge Qi, General Manager of Strategic Cooperation, GSMA Greater China; as well as seven members of the British Parliament discussed the theme in depth, calling for establishing the China-UK Youth Innovation & Entrepreneurship Alliance. Yue Lei, a member of ACYF and Senior Vice President of Sanpower Group (Sanpower), attended the roundtable and delivered an impressive speech.

The roundtable was themed “Trend of Globalization & China-UK Global All-round Strategic Partnership in the 21st Century”. Under the theme, the attendees discussed two issues: I. Advancing inclusive growth and perfecting global governance; II. Sharing the experience of China and the UK in technical revolutions, digital innovation and innovative growth.

The Chinese and British young leaders present were optimistic about "China-UK Global All-round Strategic Partnership in the 21st Century" in the context of "Brexit" and global integration. They called for establishing the China-UK Innovation Incubator Alliance.

In the discussion, Yue noted that China-UK relations have entered an unprecedented "golden period" and the two sides are working to forge a global all-round strategic partnership in the 21st century. To achieve the strategic goal, the two sides need to carry out all-round, multi-level and wide-range dialogues and cooperation. This year, the roundtable still focused on "humanity".

The subject was "youth" and the theme was "humanity" this year. With focus on the theme, a long-acting mechanism should be designed to deepen communication and cooperation. With the "China-UK Innovation Incubator Alliance" as an opportunity, efforts should be made to design the cooperation plan in depth and specifically, said Yue.

On the other hand, the two sides should focus on cultural exchange. Yue made a proposal on launching "China-UK Cultural and Historical Corridor" to seek and review the stories of mutual cultural reference and friendly exchanges between the two countries throughout history beyond time and space.

According to sources, the roundtable not only arranged theme discussion and communication, but also organized Chinese and British young leaders to visit innovation & entrepreneurship sites such as Shanghai Tusstar Incubator.

About China-UK High-Level People-to-People Dialogue

From April 12 to 16, 2012, then State Councilor Liu Yandong visited the UK at the invitation of Jeremy Hunt, UK Secretary of State for Culture, Olympics, Media and Sport, launching China-UK High-Level People-to-People Dialogue on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the establishment of ambassadorial-level diplomatic relations between China and the UK. During her visit to the UK, Liu communicated with British people from all walks of life such as politics, academics, commerce and culture, co-chaired the 1st Meeting of China-UK High-Level People-to-People Dialogue with Hunt, marking a milestone in the history of China-UK people-to-people exchange.

China-UK High-Level People-to-People Dialogue is the third of its kind established with world powers by the Chinese government after it established similar mechanisms with the USA and Russia. It shows that China attaches great importance to China-UK relations, and builds a higher-level platform for bilateral people-to-people dialogue.