On December 9, 2025, the Promotion Event for the Lecture Tour by Ambassadors from African Countries · Shanxi 2025 was successfully held in Taiyuan. Lu Xiangdong, Vice President of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC); Dong Xiaolin, Director of the Foreign Affairs Office of the People's Government of Shanxi Province; and Li Guorong, Deputy Director of the Department of Commerce of Shanxi Province, attended the event and delivered remarks. Ambassadors from five African countries in China—Daouda Bitie, Ambassador of Burkina Faso to China; Abigail Shoniwa, Ambassador of Zimbabwe to China; and Misenga Mpuka Mamissa, Chargé d'Affaires of the Embassy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in China, along with other ambassadors, introduced their respective countries. Counsellor Zhan Xiaobo from the Department of African Affairs of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People's Republic of China gave a policy briefing on China-Africa cooperation. Nearly 200 representatives from the Department of Culture and Tourism of Shanxi Province, State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission, China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, Federation of Industry and Commerce, universities, enterprises and the media attended the event.(Vice President Lu Xiangdong delivers remarks)In his remarks, Vice President Lu Xiangdong emphasized that China and Africa are close friends, sharing a bond of mutual support and a shared destiny. Subnational cooperation is the vital force that sustains China-Africa relations. This event has provided a platform for information sharing and bilateral exchanges in subnational cooperation between China and Africa. The development needs of African countries align closely with Shanxi's industrial transformation, and the cooperation between the two sides has significant advantages and promising prospects. Strengthening friendly exchanges will inject new momentum into China-Africa relations.Vice President Lu Xiangdong also highlighted that the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee has outlined an ambitious blueprint for China's economic and social development over the next five years. China will firmly promote high-quality development, expand high-level opening-up, and share opportunities for common development with countries in the Global South, including African countries, creating a new framework for win-win cooperation. The CPAFFC is committed to assisting subnational governments in China and Africa in strengthening practical cooperation, promoting people-to-people connectivity, and advancing China-Africa relations to new heights.(Left: Daouda Bitie, Ambassador of Burkina Faso to China, makes introduction of the country; Middle: Abigail Shoniwa, Ambassador of Zimbabwe to China, makes introduction; Right: Misenga Mpuka Mamissa, Chargé d'Affaires of the Embassy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in China, makes introduction.)Ambassadors from Burkina Faso, Zimbabwe, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Namibia, and the Central African Republic expressed their gratitude for China's long-standing selfless support for Africa's economic and social development. They introduced their countries' national conditions, industrial advantages, investment environment, and cooperation opportunities with China, focusing on investment projects in infrastructure construction, agriculture, energy, and green development. The ambassadors unanimously agreed that China-Africa cooperation is a model for new international relations and South-South cooperation. They expressed their commitment to further expanding exchanges with Shanxi Province and other provinces and cities in China, strengthening economic and trade relations and cultural exchanges, and increasing the number of friendly cities, ensuring that the fruits of China-Africa cooperation better benefit the people of both sides.(Top left: Bertha Amakali, Minister-Counselor of the Embassy of Namibia to China, introduces her country; Top right: Charles Lasserre Yakite, Economic Counselor of the Embassy of the Central African Republic to China, introduces his country; Bottom: Event venue.On December 8, 2025, Zhu Xiaodong, Vice Governor of Shanxi Province, met with the African diplomatic delegation in Taiyuan. During their visit to Shanxi, the delegation also visited local enterprises in green energy, modern agriculture, food processing, and infrastructure construction, and toured historical and cultural landmarks.The Lecture Tour by Ambassadors from African Countries is an important platform created by the CPAFFC to promote practical cooperation between domestic provinces and African countries. It aims to help subnational governments and enterprises understand Africa and foster subnational exchanges and cooperation between China and Africa. Since its inception in 2008, the program has brought African ambassadors to more than 20 provinces and cities across China. This year's lecture tour was organized by the Foreign Affairs Office of the People's Government of Shanxi Province and the Shanxi Provincial People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries.

On December 9, 2025, Vice President Sun Xueqing of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) met with Louis Aliot, Mayor of Perpignan, France, who was visiting China at the invitation of the CPAFFC. The two sides engaged in an in-depth discussion on strengthening subnational exchanges between China and France, advancing practical cooperation, and establishing friendly city partnerships.

On December 8, 2025, Vice President Sun Xueqing of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) met with Caoimhe Archibald, Economy Minister of the Northern Ireland Local Government and her delegation.Vice President Sun Xueqing extended a warm welcome to Economy Minister Caoimhe Archibald and her delegation to China, introducing the key points of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China. He emphasized that China is committed to advancing high-quality development and a high level of opening-up, and expressed China's willingness to share opportunities and promote mutual development with countries around the world. He also highlighted the CPAFFC's strong commitment to fostering practical cooperation and friendly city exchanges with regions across the UK, including Northern Ireland Vice President Sun Xueqing expressed appreciation for the longstanding positive cooperation with the Northern Ireland local government and reiterated the CPAFFC's readiness to strengthen these partnerships by building more bridges for people-to-people exchanges, practical cooperation, cultural exchanges, and youth friendship, thereby promoting steady and long-term cooperation between China and the UK at the subnational level.Economy Minister Caoimhe Archibald highly praised the CPAFFC's important role in advancing subnational cooperation and friendly city exchanges between China and the UK. She shared Northern Ireland's unique economic and trade position, as well as its ongoing cooperation with China in areas such as economy, education, and cultural tourism. Caoimhe Archibald expressed her desire to further develop friendly relations with China, expand channels for exchange and cooperation, and share development opportunities.Lv Hongwei, Deputy Director-General of the Department of European and Asian Affairs of the CPAFFC and Kerry Curran, representative of the Northern Ireland Local Government in China, were present at the meeting.

From November 24 to November 25, 2025, the 13th Vietnam-China People's Forum, co-hosted by the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) and the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organizations (VUFO), was successfully held in Hanoi, Vietnam. Sun Xueqing, Vice President of the CPAFFC; He Wei, Chinese Ambassador to Vietnam; Phan Anh Son, President of the Vietnam Union of Friendship Organisations; and Ngo Le Van, Deputy Minister of Vietnamese Ministry of Foreign Affairs; as well as 26 experts and representatives from the political, economic and trade, cultural, and media sectors of two countries, attended the forum. During the forum, Bui Thi Minh Hoai, member of the Political Bureau and Secretariat of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam, President of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, met with the Chinese and Vietnamese participants.Bui Thi Minh Hoai highly praised the positive role the Vietnam-China People's Forum has played in enhancing mutual understanding and building cooperative consensus between the two countries. She expressed the hope that the friendship organizations and experts from two countries would fully leverage bilateral exchange mechanisms, such as the Vietnam-China People's Forum, to effectively translate the strategic goals set by the top leaders of two countries into public consensus and concrete actions, thus contributing to the continued development of the Vietnam-China comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.The theme of this year's forum was "Celebrating 75 Years of China-Vietnam Friendship: Consolidating Public Support for Building a China-Vietnam Community with a Shared Future." Participants reflected on the overall development of China-Vietnam relations over the past 75 years and engaged in in-depth discussions on topics such as national governance models and perspectives, China-Vietnam economic, trade and investment cooperation, as well as cooperation in education and science and technology. They also offered policy recommendations for advancing the construction of a China-Vietnam community with a shared future that carries strategic significance.Both sides agreed that, under the strategic guidance of the top leaders of two countries and the two Parties, bilateral cooperation in various fields has expanded, connectivity has improved across the board, cultural exchanges have thrived, and the outcomes of friendly cooperation have been abundant. As an important platform for people-to-people diplomacy, the Vietnam-China People's Forum serves as a living example of how the friendship organizations of the two countries implement the important consensus reached by top leaders of two countries and the two Parties. Both sides emphasized the need to strengthen their historical responsibility and mission, uphold the 16-word guideline of "long-term stability, future orientation, good-neighborly friendship and comprehensive cooperation" and the spirit of "good neighbors, good friends, good comrades and good partners", and work towards the overall goal of the 'six mores', i.e., greater political mutual trust, more solid security cooperation, deeper mutually beneficial cooperation, stronger popular support, closer multilateral coordination and better handling of differences, to continue contributing people's wisdom and strength toward the building of a China-Vietnam community with a shared future that carries strategic significance.The Vietnam-China People's Forum was jointly established in 2010 by the CPAFFCA and the VUFO. It has served as a valuable platform for the two countries to exchange public opinion, enhance mutual trust, build consensus, and pursue common development. In April of this year, the forum was highlighted as a key initiative under the theme of "Consolidating Public Support for Building a China-Vietnam Community with a Shared Future" in the Joint Statement Between China and Vietnam on Further Deepening and Elevating the Comprehensive Strategic Cooperative Partnership and Building a China-Vietnam Community With a Shared Future that Carries Strategic Significance.

On November 21, 2025, the China-US Counter-Narcotics Cooperation and Comprehensive Dialogue opened in Shanghai. Shen Xin, Vice President of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC); and Duan Yong, Deputy Secretary of the CPC Shanghai University Committee, attended the opening ceremony and delivered remarks. Marcel Arsenault, Founder of the Arsenault Family Foundation, delivered a video remarks.In his remarks, Vice President Shen Xin noted that the meeting between the Chinese and U.S. presidents had charted a course for the development of bilateral relations. At this pivotal moment, the establishment of this unofficial and constructive dialogue platform aims to provide an opportunity for officials, scholars, and practitioners to engage in candid discussions, share experiences, build consensus, and explore potential pathways forward. Vice President Shen Xin expressed the hope that through this dialogue, both sides would enhance mutual understanding, narrow perception gaps, focus on cooperation, jointly explore practical and feasible ways to advance, and build mutual trust to lay a solid foundation for deeper and broader cooperation in the future.This dialogue is co-hosted by the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries and the Arsenault Family Foundation (USA) Beijing Representative Office, and organized by the International Center for Drug Policy Studies, Shanghai University. The theme of the dialogue is "Emerging Synthetic Opioid Threats: From Fentanyl to Nitazenes and Beyond". Over the course of the two-day dialogue, multidisciplinary experts and officials from both China and the United States will share their viewpoints and perspectives on the current opioid abuse crisis, discuss new drug threats facing two countries, and strengthen communication and coordination between relevant personnel from two countries in addressing the rapidly evolving trends and challenges of drug abuse.

In response to Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's erroneous public remarks on Taiwan issues, Japanese non-governmental groups and friendly personages issued statements of strong opposition, urging the Japanese government to follow the spirit of the four political documents between China and Japan and take measures to prevent China-Japan relations from falling into stalemate.On November 17, 2025, Tokuichiro Utsunomiya, President of the Japan-China Friendship Association (JCFA), released a public statement pointing out that Takaichi's remarks are extremely erroneous. The statement noted that in today's turbulent world, it is essential to bring stability and hope to the world with Japan-China friendship. However, Sanae Takaichi made erroneous remarks in the congress, claiming that "a Taiwan Emergency constitutes a survival-threatening situation for Japan". The association expressed deep concerns that such remarks would severely damage Japan-China relations and strongly urged the Japanese government to take effective measures in line with the spirit of the four political documents between Japan and China to improve the current situation.On November 18, Hisashi Inoue, President of JCFA, publicly issued a statement titled "Protest against Prime Minister Takaichi's Remarks 'A Taiwan Emergency constitutes a survival-threatening situation for Japan' and Demand for Its Immediate Retraction". The statement noted that the Taiwan question is purely China's internal affair and that the statement about so-called "survival-threatening situation for Japan" itself is an interference in China's internal affairs, violating the Japanese government's commitment to the one-China principle as stated in the 1972 Japan-China joint statement. Takaichi's remarks have abruptly heightened tensions in Japan-China relations and are dangerous statements that could drag Japan into war. The association strongly protested against it and demanded an immediate retraction.Noriyuki Kawamura, emeritus professor at Nagoya University of Foreign Studies and Vice President of the Japan-China Relations Society, said in an interview that all Japanese experts he knows believe that Takaichi's remarks are extremely erroneous and she should immediately retract her erroneous remarks. The Japan-China joint statement clearly stipulates that Japanese government recognizes the one-China principle and respects the position that "Taiwan is an inalienable part of China's territory." This is the cornerstone of China-Japan relations, and it is extremely important to uphold and safeguard this principle.

On November 11, 2025, Vice President Yuan Mindao of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) met with a delegation led by Anton Refalo, Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Animal Rights of Malta at the CPAFFC.Vice President Yuan Mindao extended a welcome to Minister Refalo and the delegation. He highlighted the guiding principles of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, emphasizing that China will steadfastly advance high-quality development and high-level opening-up, and stand ready to share opportunities and promote mutual development with all countries. Yuan emphasized that the CPAFFC attaches great importance to advancing exchanges with Malta and other European countries, and stands ready to better build bridges for people-to-people exchanges, practical cooperation, cultural exchanges, and youth friendship, to promote the stable and long-term development of China-Europe and China-Malta relations.Minister Refalo spoke highly of the traditional friendship and cooperation between Malta and China. He expressed that Malta is ready to strengthen economic, trade, and cultural exchanges with China, and work together for global prosperity and stability.John Busuttil, Maltese Ambassador to China; Lyu Hongwei, Deputy Director-General of the Department of European and Asian Affairs of the CPAFFC; among others, were present at the meeting.

On November 17, 2025, the 6th U.S.-China Hong Kong Forum, co-hosted by the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) and the China-United States Exchange Foundation (CUSEF), kicked off in Hong Kong. With the theme of "Circles for Peace", the forum gathered over 300 participants from political, economic, academic, scientific, technological, educational and other sectors. They came from China and the U.S., as well as Asian countries including India, Singapore and Bangladesh. Vice President Shen Xin of the CPAFFC; John Zhao, Chairman of the China-United States Exchange Foundation; and Charlene Barshefsky, Chairperson of the National Committee on U.S.-China Relations, attended the opening address and the high-level conversation. Xie Feng, Ambassador of China to the U.S., delivered a video address.In the speech, Shen Xin noted that when President Xi Jinping met with President Donald Trump in Busan, he pointed out that China and the United States should be partners and friends. That is what history has taught us and what reality needs. President Trump also stated that China is the biggest partner of the U.S., and the two countries can get many great things done for the world and have many years of success. Shen Xin emphasized that people from all walks of life in the two countries should adhere to the principles of mutual respect, peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation, and actively implement the important consensus reached at the meeting between the heads of the two states. Shen elaborated on the guiding principles of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, expressing that in the next five years, China's opening-up and cooperation will reach a new level in both breadth and depth. Despite external pressures and the resurgence of protectionism, China remains firmly committed to expanding high-standard opening-up and institutional opening-up, which will surely provide broader space for China-U.S. cooperation. Additionally, he shared the story of Kuliang, which shows an enduring China-U.S. bond of love, friendship and understanding, and examples of China-U.S. sister-city exchanges. He hoped that Chinese and American visionaries from the two nations would actively contribute to the people-to-people friendship between the two countries and strive to promote the stable, sound and sustainable development of China-U.S. relations.Shen also attended a dialogue under the theme "From the Ground Up: Strengthening U.S.–China Ties Through People", in which he conducted in-depth discussions on enhancing people-to-people exchanges between the two countries with Neil Bush, Chairman of the George H.W. Bush Foundation for U.S.-China Relations, and Nicole Kruse, Vice President of the Carter Center. 

On November 10, 2025, Vice President Yuan Mindao of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) met with Barbara Terenzi, Chairman of the San Marino-China Friendship Association, at the CPAFFC.Yuan spoke highly of the long-standing and remarkable contribution of the San Marino-China Friendship Association to promoting friendly exchanges between China and San Marino. He underlined the CPAFFC's readiness to work with the San Marino-China Friendship Association to jointly serve as bridges for people-to-people exchanges, practical cooperation, cultural exchanges, and youth friendship between the two countries, taking China-San Marino relations to new heights.Barbara expressed appreciation for the warm reception by the CPAFFC. She noted that 2026 will mark the 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between San Marino and China, and that she will work with the Chinese side to further deepen people-to-people exchanges, expand practical cooperation, and constantly enhance the friendship between the two peoples.

On November 10, Vice President Yuan Mindao of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries (CPAFFC) met in Beijing with a delegation from the Hokkaido Japan-China Friendship Association led by its President Sasaki Masafumi.Yuan welcomed the delegation to China, noting that this year marks the 80th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, a significant occasion to commemorate history and reflect on the value of peace. He expressed hope that the Hokkaido Japan-China Friendship Association would carry forward its fine tradition, take an active and forward-looking approach, and guide its members and the broader public in gaining an objective understanding of China. He also encouraged efforts to strengthen subnational and youth exchanges, and contribute to developing China-Japan relations and the friendship between the two peoples.Sasaki Masafumi stated that the Hokkaido Japan-China Friendship Association is committed to further advancing friendly exchanges between Japan and China across various fields, enhancing youth engagement, attracting more young people to participate in the cause of friendship, and achieving new outcomes in Hokkaido's exchanges and cooperation with China.