西南大学牵头建成中希文明互鉴中心

The Center of Chinese and Greek Ancient Civilizations was inaugurated in Athens， Greece on February 20 local time. Chinese Vice Premier Sun Chunlan read a reply letter from Chinese President Xi Jinping to the members of the centers council， extending congratulations on its establishment. In his reply letter， Xi noted the “great historical and contemporary significance for the two countries to establish the center， which is committed to promoting exchanges and mutual learning between the two civilizations and advancing the development of civilizations of various countries”.

Attendees of the ceremony include Huai Jinpeng， Chinas Minister of Education， Xiao Junzheng， Chinas Ambassador to Greece， Panagiotis Pikrammenos， Greek Deputy Prime Minister， and Angelos Syrigos， Greek Deputy Minister of Education & Religious Affairs.

During his state visit to Greece in 2019， Xi and the Greek leaders jointly advocated exchanges and mutual learning between civilizations. After the visit， China and Greece acted on the consensus of the leaders and prepared for establishing the Center of Chinese and Greek Ancient Civilizations. Supported by the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Ministry of Education， Chinas Southwest University led the joint establishment of the Center of Chinese and Greek Ancient Civilizations together with Renmin University of China， Shandong University， Sichuan University， University of Athens， University of Patras， Aristotle University of Thessaloniki， and the University of Crete.

“The establishment of the Center of Chinese and Greek Ancient Civilizations is the fruit of years of preparation by the two countries.” Zhang Weiguo， President of Southwest University， said. The preparation for establishing the Center began in the spring of 2020. At that time， the Greek Ministry of Education coordinated with the University of Athens， the University of Patras， the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki， and the University of Crete to set up the Center in Athens.

Besides， the Embassy of the Peoples Republic of China in the Hellenic Republic reached out to Southwest University in the hopes that the university would harness its strengths in literature， history， and philosophy， especially the time-honored research into Chinese and Greek civilizations， and would work with other universities in China to set up the Center of Chinese and Greek Ancient Civilizations for all-round cooperation with Greece.

In July 2020， Southwest University released the Plan on Building the Center of Chinese and Greek Ancient Civilizations， which received a positive response from Greece. Overcoming the setbacks from the COVID-19 pandemic， the university sent four exchange students as the first group to the University of Athens in October 2020. Based on the agreements reached with multiple Greek universities， Southwest University completed the legal procedure of the Hellenic National Academic Recognition and Information Center in 2021， removing the legal obstacles to the implementation of the joint project.

In the days to come， the Center of Chinese and Greek Ancient Civilizations will uphold the principle of openness， sharing， and win-win cooperation， integrate the resources of first-class universities in China and Greece， and regard the joint pursuit of the Belt and Road Initiative and a human community with a shared future as its mission. International platforms of talent development， scientific research， and social services and a high-level think tank platform will be set up. Besides， the China-CEEC People-to-People Exchange Center will be built as a bridge that connects China with Europe.

The Center of Chinese and Greek Ancient Civilizations will make its endeavors in such key areas as talent training， scientific research， social services， and people-to-people exchange.

Source/Official WeChat Account of Chongqing Foreign Affairs

當地时间2月20日，中希文明互鉴中心成立仪式在希腊首都雅典举行。国务院副总理孙春兰宣读习近平主席致中心理事会成员的复信，祝贺中希文明互鉴中心成立。复信指出“现在，两国建立中希文明互鉴中心，致力于推动中希文明交流互鉴、促进各国文明发展，具有十分重要的历史和时代意义。”

教育部部长怀进鹏、中国驻希腊大使肖军正等，以及希腊副总理皮克拉梅诺斯、教育与宗教事务部副部长赛内格斯等出席仪式。

2019年，习近平主席对希腊国事访问期间，同希腊领导人共同倡导文明交流互鉴。访后，双方积极落实领导人共识，筹建中希文明互鉴中心。在外交部、教育部等部门的大力支持下，中希文明互鉴中心由西南大学牵头，联合中国人民大学、山东大学和四川大学等国内高校，与希腊雅典大学、帕特雷大学、亚里士多德大学和克里特大学共同合作成立。

“中希文明互鉴中心是两国筹备多年结出的硕果。”西南大学校长张卫国介绍，该中心的筹建，始于2020年春天。当年，希腊教育部组织协调雅典大学、帕特雷大学、亚里士多德大学和克里特大学，在雅典成立“希腊—中国文明互鉴中心”。与此同时，我国驻希腊使馆联系西南大学，希望西南大学发挥在文史哲特别是中国和希腊文明研究领域的深厚积淀，联合国内相关高校筹建一个“中国—希腊文明互鉴中心”，与希腊方面开展全方位合作。

2020年7月，西南大学提出《中希文明互鉴中心建设方案》，得到希腊方面的积极回应。2020年10月，西南大学克服疫情影响，选派了第一批4名交换生到雅典大学学习。2021年，在前期与希腊多所大学达成协议的基础上，西南大学完成了在希腊国家认证委员会（DOATAP）的认证工作，为联合项目的实施扫清了法律上的障碍。

未来，中希文明互鉴中心将本着“开放、共享、合作、共赢”的原则，整合中国和希腊一流高校资源，以共建“一带一路”和构建人类命运共同体为使命，建成国际化的人才培养、科学研究和社会服务平台、高水平智库平台，建成中国—中东欧人文交流基地以及联结中国与欧洲的桥梁。中希文明互鉴中心将围绕联合人才培养、科学研究、社会服务和中外人文交流等方面开展工作。

文/重庆外事微信公众号

图/西南大学提供