Behind the promotion of influence and attraction of Beijing Xiangshan Forum is the continuous improvement of China’s status.

　　　　　　 CCTV News:The 10th Beijing Xiangshan Forum will be held in Beijing International Convention Center tomorrow (October 29th). Up to now, official delegations from more than 90 countries and international organizations, including Russia, the United States, Singapore, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia, have confirmed their participation. Beijing Xiangshan Forum adheres to the concept of "equality, openness, tolerance and mutual learning" and is committed to gathering wisdom, expanding consensus and enhancing mutual trust. It has developed into an important platform for international security and defense dialogue and has important international influence.

Beijing Xiangshan Forum was held in 2006, and it has been 17 years since then. Our reporter interviewed military experts who participated in every forum in the past and will soon participate in the tenth forum. So, what was their initial impression of the forum? What are the most profound changes that I have felt over the years?

Jiang Xinfeng, Academy of Military Sciences:The first Xiangshan Forum was entirely for scholars, probably a round-table meeting of scholars from 21 countries. At that time, it was entirely an academic dialogue meeting. Later, it was upgraded from Track 2 to Track 1.5, which is a semi-official and semi-scholar discussion platform for security issues with the participation of scholars.

From the round-table meetings attended by dozens of scholars to the official delegations of more than 90 countries and international organizations this year, among them, 22 representatives at or above the ministerial level of national defense, 14 representatives at the general level of the armed forces, and more than 200 experts from more than 50 countries (regions) signed up for the meeting. Experts attending the meeting felt that the scale of Beijing Xiangshan Forum is getting bigger and bigger, the specifications are constantly improving, and the topics are getting wider and wider.

Li Shuyin, Academy of Military Sciences:At first, the discussion was only focused on the security issues in the Asia-Pacific region, but now it has been extended to the whole global security issues, not only traditional but also non-traditional. For example, this year’s design focuses on the European security architecture, the Northeast Asian security architecture and the Asia-Pacific security architecture centered on the ASEAN region, as well as nuclear security, maritime risk management and technical security issues.

Beijing Xiangshan Forum is not only a platform for international security discussions, but also a platform for cultural exchanges.

Li Shuyin, Academy of Military Sciences:For example, when we go out to attend an academic delegation and visit abroad, we will meet these old friends inadvertently. They can clearly remember their participation in Xiangshan Forum, including who was the host of their speech, including what hotel they stayed in, what delicious food they ate during this period, what delicious food they ate in China and what memorable gifts they bought, which may also be a witness to the expansion of China culture.

Li Shuyin said that the rising influence and attraction of Beijing Xiangshan Forum is behind the rising status of China.

Li Shuyin, Academy of Military Sciences:China’s status and role as a great power, and China’s role in international and regional security are constantly improving.