Asian Alliance for the Protection of Heritage launched in China with the participation of Syria

Beijing, (ST)- The Asian Alliance for the Protection of Cultural Heritage was launched on Wednesday in China with the participation of Syria and delegations of several countries. The launching was announced during the conference of the Council for the Protection of the Asian Cultural Heritage held in Xi’an city.

Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory message to the General Assembly of the Alliance for Cultural Heritage in Asia on the work of the conference, in which he said: “Asia, as an important cradle of human civilization and an incubator and home to countless wealth of cultural heritage, wrote a brilliant chapter in the records of world civilizations. Such an alliance will help protect Asian cultural heritage and deepen exchanges between Asian civilizations.

The Chinese president expressed his country’s desire to work with all Asian countries within the framework of the alliance, to strengthen the exchange of experiences, enhance international cooperation in the cultural heritage sector and preserve it and establish a network for dialogue and cooperation between civilizations.

He also expressed his country’s desire to establish closer ties between the peoples of different countries.

For his part, Deputy Head of the National Cultural Heritage Administration in China Shih Bing said that this alliance, which many Asian countries have joined, will help build a consensus on the protection of cultural relics and build a cooperation mechanism and exchange platform between these countries.

The Syrian Minister of Culture, Dr. Labana Mashouh, said in a speech that Syria represents one of the ten founding countries of the alliance, noting the civilized role of Syria, and the importance of this alliance in facilitating the process of communication between peoples, and ib deepening the sense of civilized belonging.

The Minister of Culture touched upon the common cultural denominators that unite the peoples of Asia, which fortify their cultural heritage in the face of future challenges. He stressed the importance of this event in protecting the heritage of the alliance’s countries.

Li Chun, Chinese Vice Minister of Culture and Tourism, said that China will support the sustainable development of the alliance on the basis of the Asian Cultural Heritage Preservation Fund, which has so far collected about $12.71 million to support cultural heritage protection projects launched by China and other member states.

It was agreed on the objectives of the alliance, which include cooperation in protecting the archaeological cultural heritage, supporting efforts aimed at recovering antiquities and combating their smuggling, promoting the exchange of research and scientific expertise in the field of excavation and restoration, and establishing a common platform for acquaintance and exchange of benefit in protecting the tangible cultural heritage of the member states of the alliance.

It was also agreed on a joint work to enable the alliance to enhance the economy and be one of the pillars of sustainable development.

Raghda Sawas