Beijing News (Reporter Xie Lian) "We finally ended the 2023 Imperial Springs International Forum with a hopeful, inclusive, and positive statement, and in this sense, it was a fairly successful forum. On December 5, the co-chairman of the Nizami Gangawi International Center and the former ** of Latvia, Vayla Vike-Freiberga, said in an interview with a reporter from the Beijing News.
From December 3 to 5, the 2023 Imperial Springs International Forum was held in Guangzhou, with more than 130 guests from more than 40 countries in the fields of politics, academia and business attending the forum, including more than 30 former heads of state, heads of state and heads of international organizations, and more than 60 well-known experts, scholars and diplomatic envoys.
During the forum, the participants had in-depth exchanges on topics such as promoting the building of a community with a shared future for mankind, promoting economic recovery and global cooperation, global challenges and responses, realizing the United Nations 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, people-to-people friendly exchanges, multilateralism and global governance reform.
On December 5, the 2023 Imperial Springs International Forum closed, and the "Imperial Springs Declaration" was issued at the closing ceremony. The "Imperial Springs Declaration" pointed out that today's international situation is undergoing complex and profound changes, and human society is facing unprecedented severe challenges and uncertainties. The international community should work together to address various global risks and challenges and create a better future for the world.
Freiberga told the Beijing News that the "Imperial Springs Declaration" is a very complete, comprehensive and clear statement, covering the points raised and the consensus reached at the forum by people from different parts of the world. "These are very important principles. If the world can move forward along this path, it will be beneficial for all of us. ”
On December 4, Latvian former ** Vaira Vike-Freiberga spoke at the opening ceremony of the 2023 Imperial Springs International Forum. Photo by Beijing News reporter Xie Lian.
Freiberga said, "The forum had an in-depth exchange of views with a lot of people from different countries and regions, which allowed us to find areas where we could reach consensus." She pointed out that there may be some areas where different countries and different groups of people will inevitably have different positions, but it is important to find a model of international governance that reaches rules that everyone understands and respects.
In Freiberga's view, regional conflicts remain the greatest challenge to global development. "There are still conflicts in more than 50 regions around the world, especially the conflicts between Israel and Hamas, Russia and Ukraine. Freiberga said that the world is not at peace, and that shared prosperity cannot be truly achieved without multilateralism to solve these problems.
But she still has hope for the future. "I believe that together, we can avert threats to human health, security, civilization and culture, and work towards greater progress and prosperity for all countries and a more shared and inclusive world. Freiberga said.
The theme of this year's forum is "Multilateralism: More Exchanges, More Inclusiveness, More Cooperation", which is the third time that the Imperial Springs International Forum has focused on the theme of "multilateralism" since its inception in 2014. Prior to this, in 2021, the theme of the Imperial Springs International Forum was "Multilateralism 2Edition 0 – Global Cooperation in the Post-Pandemic Era", with the theme "Multilateralism and Sustainable Development" in 2019.
Edited by Zhang Lei.
Proofreading by Li Lijun.