Officials and experts from several countries praised the achievements of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and called for further related cooperation at an international symposium on the 10th anniversary of the BRI held in Tokyo on Friday.

Over the past ten years, with the joint efforts of all parties, the BRI has evolved from a Chinese initiative to an international practice; from vision to reality, and has become the most extensive and largest international cooperation platform in the world today, said Chinese Ambassador to Japan Wu Jianghao at the symposium.

The joint development of the Belt and Road is a systematic global project and a project of the century, said Wu, adding that China will continue to promote the cooperation in the joint development of the Belt and Road, so as to achieve high-quality development with larger scope, wider field and deeper level.

Fukuda Yasuo, former Japanese Prime Minister, said during his speech that the BRI is aimed at realizing the vision of a community of shared future for mankind, a noble ideal that will face numerous challenges in its implementation.

In his speech, Li Yi, director of China Media Group (CMG) Asia Pacific, said that over the past ten years, the BRI has become an international cooperation platform that is open, inclusive, and mutually beneficial, and a global public product widely welcomed by the international community. 

CMG Asia Pacific will work together with experts, scholars and media colleagues from Asia Pacific countries to promote high-quality joint development of the Belt and Road, and contributes to building the community with a shared future for Asia Pacific and mankind, Li added.

Other participants agreed that the BRI has brought tangible benefits, extensive cooperation opportunities and development prospects to countries participating in the initiative.

More than 100 people, including officials, experts, scholars and entrepreneurs from countries including Japan, China and Laos attended the symposium.

The symposium was co-hosted by Embassy of the People's Republic in Japan, CMG Asia Pacific, Center for Asia Pacific, China International Communications Group, and Belt & Road Japan Research Center.

(Cover: An aerial view of trains of Jakarta-Bandung High-Speed Railway (HSR) parking near a train station in Bandung, Indonesia, July 20, 2023. /Xinhua)