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In July, carrying the enthusiasm and anticipation of midsummer, the Sichuan delegation embarked on visits to Germany and Seychelles.

These transcontinental meetings served as both a friendship-enhancing journey and a cooperation-deepening endeavor. Sichuan, now ramping up efforts to build itself into a strategic highland for opening up to the west and a new base for participating in international competition, continues to showcase its unique charm and dynamic development to the world, ever-widening its path of openness.

A Journey of Commitment: Sichuan's Profound Bonds with Germany and Seychelles

Last year, Sichuan welcomed visits from Markus S?der, Minister-President of the German State of Bavaria, and Wavel Ramkalawan, President of Seychelles, both of whom extended warm invitations for a return visit. This delegation's trip fulfills those commitments.

Extending our gaze further back, we see that the seeds of Sichuan's ties with Germany and Seychelles were, in fact, planted long ago.

In 1988, Sichuan Province and Germany's North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) formally established sister provincial-state relations, inaugurating over three decades of friendship and exchange. From the joint program for training over 200 professionals across multiple disciplines in 2010, to the dynamic exchanges between Chinese and German youth during the inaugural "Discover Sichuan" Youth Summer Camp for Sister Provinces in 2017, and then to the NRW cultural-tourism officials' consecutive participation in the 2021 "Sichuan-Europe Friendship Cities Culture and Tourism Promotion Conference" and 2022 "Sichuan-European &African Friendship Cities Dialogue on World Heritage", the friendship between the two regions has grown ever stronger.

As China-Germany cooperation deepens, Sichuan has expanded its German "circle of friends" to include another sister region—Bavaria. In recent years, a series of important events have been held successively, including the China (Sichuan) - Bavaria Economic, Trade, Cultural and Tourism Cooperation Conference, the Sichuan-Bavaria High-level Dialogue, and the Dialogue between the Provinces of China and the Free State of Bavaria of Germany. Cooperation between the two sides has also deepened in culture, sports, and healthcare. FC Bayern Munich delegations visited Sichuan in 2017 and 2018. In July 2019, West China Hospital of Sichuan University and Universit?tsklinikum Erlangen signed an agreement to jointly implement international medical cooperation projects. A landmark achievement came in 2023 when Sichuan and Bavaria formally established friendly province-state relations, creating a higher-level platform for people-to-people exchanges.

Sichuan-Seychelles exchanges are imbued with the romantic essence of tropical oceans. In 2018, the Vice President of Seychelles Vincent Meriton led a delegation to Sichuan, where they discovered the unique charm of the giant panda's homeland during the fifth China-Africa People's Forum. Since then, the cultural exchanges between Sichuan and this Indian Ocean island nation have flourished. In 2024, the charter flight from Chengdu to Seychelles made its maiden voyage, building an aerial cultural bridge between the two places. Reporters from the Seychelles Broadcasting Corporation visited Chengdu to gather stories, capturing with their cameras the diverse allure of this "park city blessed with snow mountains".

Highlights of the Visit: "Splendid Sichuan: Land of Abundance" Debuts Overseas

Focusing our attention again on the outbound visit in July, this fulfilling trip to honor the invitations was replete with highlights. The delegation's engagements not only strengthened Sichuan’s bonds with Germany and Seychelles but also further advanced its cooperation with these two countries, yielding rich fruits. Sichuan signed a total of 49 agreements or cooperation memoranda with German and Seychelles partners, covering 33 economic and trade projects worth 9.08 billion yuan.

On July 4, the delegation visited Siemens AG's Munich headquarters, where, under the strategic cooperation framework between Sichuan and Siemens, the corporation signed a memorandum of cooperation on new industrialization with Dazhou City and a strategic cooperation agreement with Wuliangye Group.

In September last year, at the Seychelles-Chengdu Economic, Trade, Culture and Tourism Promotion Conference, Chengdu and Victoria, the capital of Seychelles, signed a Memorandum on the Establishment of Friendly Cooperation Relations between Chengdu of the People's Republic of China and Victoria of the Republic of Seychelles. Ten months later, during the delegation's visit to Seychelles, Chengdu and Victoria officially established sister-city relations, commemorated by the presentation of a painted giant panda sculpture. These efforts have further deepened bilateral friendship.

In addition to the "routine activities" such as high-level visits and cooperation promotion, journalists noticed that within the compact and event-filled itinerary of less than a week, promoting Sichuan's cultural and tourism resources and facilitating cultural and people-to-people exchanges and cooperation were also major highlights of this outbound visit.

On July 6, the Chinese Choir at the Burg in Germany once again sang touching melodies that linked the friendship between the two countries' people at the China-German youth cultural exchange event. As the only Chinese-language choir in Germany, this group shares a profound cultural connection with Sichuan. In July 2017, some students from the Chinese Choir at the Burg came to Sichuan to participate in the first "Discover Sichuan" Youth Summer Camp for Sister Provinces. In recent years, the choir has visited Sichuan on multiple occasions. Using music as a medium, it has further enhanced the cultural interaction between Sichuan and Germany.

The cultural and tourism brand "Splendid Sichuan: Land of Abundance" made its international debut at the China (Sichuan) - Bavaria Economic, Trade, Cultural and Tourism Cooperation Conference and the China (Sichuan) - Seychelles Cultural &Tourism Cooperation Exchange Conference. This brand initiative was prioritized for full development at the seventh plenary session of the 12th CPC Sichuan Provincial Committee earlier this year. At these events, Sichuan presented its cultural calling cards to the world: the exquisite Shu brocade and embroidery, the mellow Sichuan liquor and tea, and the magic of Sichuan herbs and traditional Chinese medicine, all amazing the friends from the two countries.

During his visit to Sichuan last year, Seychelles President Wavel Ramkalawan repeatedly noted that culture and tourism were key cooperation areas between Sichuan and Seychelles. In November last year, the direct charter flight from Chengdu to Seychelles made its maiden flight, and in July this year, the seasonal direct flight from Chengdu to Mahe Island in Seychelles was launched. Now, traveling between the "Land of Abundance" and the "Pearl of the Indian Ocean" only takes nine hours. This has made the relations between Sichuan and Seychelles even warmer, and their friendly cooperation continues to deepen.

Future Outlook: The Global Narrative of an Open Sichuan

This journey spanning across Asia, Europe, and Africa is merely an epitome of how an open Sichuan tells China's stories to the world. Sichuan, located in the inland hinterland, is accelerating its pace to the forefront of opening up. The scope and depth of its cultural and people-to-people exchanges with the world are on a continuous rise.

In recent years, Sichuan has carried out the "Study in Sichuan" program with African countries, attracting thousands of international students to pursue further studies in the province every year. During this delegation's visit, the education departments of Sichuan and Seychelles signed a memorandum of understanding on educational development cooperation. Relevant enterprises from the two places signed trade cooperation project agreements and strategic cooperation agreements for travel agencies. In the future, Sichuan will welcome an increasing number of young Seychellois for study tours.

Sichuan-specific elements, such as Sichuan opera, Sichuan cuisine, giant pandas, and Jiuzhaigou, enjoy global renown. International events, such as the Chengdu 2021 FISU World University Games and The World Games 2025 Chengdu, along with a string of cultural exchange activities, have either been or will be hosted in Sichuan. In the context of exchanges across the board, Sichuan has become an important platform for showcasing China's cultural diversity and a significant window for displaying the myriad facets of Chinese modernization.

In the era of globalization, cultural and people-to-people exchanges have become an important bond connecting different civilizations. When the image of the giant panda brings smiles along the Rhine and on the islands of the Indian Ocean, and when the melodies of Sichuan opera resonate with Bavarian folk songs and Creole chants, the world witnesses a Sichuan that is increasingly open, inclusive, confident and composed.