Delegation Led by President of the Belt and Road Initiative Caucus for Asia Pacific Visits GDUFS

On the morning of June 15, Ong Tee Keat, President of the Belt and Road Initiative Caucus for Asia Pacific (BRICAP) and former minister of transport of Malaysia, led a delegation to visit Guangdong University of Foreign Studies (GDUFS). Professor He Chuantian, Vice President of GDUFS, met with the guests at the Baiyun Mountain Campus. The two sides held in-depth exchanges on deepening China-Malaysia educational cooperation, expanding global and area studies, and promoting the coordinated development of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area (GBA) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).

He Chuantian extended a warm welcome to Ong Tee Keat and his delegation. He stated that as an important base in South China for international talent cultivation, foreign language and literature, global governance, foreign-related rule of law research, and international communication of Chinese culture, GDUFS has always actively served major national strategic needs, and continuously expanded its global and area studies to nations jointly building the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). He reviewed the solid foundation of cooperation between GDUFS and Malaysian universities and institutions, noting that the university has established cooperative relations with 10 higher education institutions including the University of Malaya (UM) and Universiti Tunku Abdul Rahman (UTAR), and has carried out fruitful cooperation with BRICAP in the field of Belt and Road research. He expressed the hope that this visit would serve as a new starting point to further deepen practical cooperation between the two sides in areas such as faculty and student exchanges, joint scientific research, and think tank development, and jointly contribute GDUFS’s strength to enhancing China-Malaysia friendship and BRI cooperation.

Ong Tee Keat expressed his gratitude for the warm reception. He pointed out that since the establishment of diplomatic relations between Malaysia and China in 1974, bilateral relations have continued to deepen, with fruitful outcomes especially in fields such as the digital economy, artificial intelligence, green technology and people-to-people exchanges. As a renowned hometown of overseas Chinese, Guangdong shares profound and enduring people-to-people ties with Malaysia, and such cross-generational emotional bonds represent a unique advantage for deepening cooperation. Ong Tee Keat stated that the BRICAP attaches great importance to its strategic partnership with GDUFS. Going forward, he hopes to maintain a flexible and efficient cooperation mechanism in information sharing and joint event organization, while fully leveraging the GBA as a connecting platform to promote in-depth collaboration between China and ASEAN in economic and trade exchanges, people-to-people narratives, and youth exchanges, and jointly opening up new prospects for regional cooperation.

Group Photo

Representatives from the Office of International Cooperation and Exchange, the Guangdong Research Institute for International Studies, and other relevant departments were also present at the meeting.