Today (29th June 2009) 100 Young leaders in business and politics from China met their British counterparts ‘The Young Icebreakers’ at the Chinese embassy in London.
Recognising the importance of youth exchanges to mutual understanding and friendship as well as to long-term development of relations between China and UK, Chinese Ambassador Mme Fu Ying hosted a reception for a 100-youth visiting delegation from China on the evening of 29th June at the Chinese Embassy in London (49 Portland Place, London W1B 1JL)
Many of these 100 young people from China are leaders of youth organisations in cities and towns throughout China. They work with young people on a daily basis, and are well-placed to talk about the lives and aspirations of young people in China. They held a dialogue with the Young Icebreakers before the reception on topics such as how to cope with employment challenges for young people during financial crisis, China’s international standing and role and its relations with the West, community life of young people in comparative perspective in the two countries, or topics such as climate changes and how sports events like the Olympics bring people together.
The UK-China youth exchange programme was initiated by Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown during the PM’s visit to China in 2008. The first 100-member British youth delegation visited China last year. This Chinese group was the first of its kind to visit the UK this year.
