An international symposium on “History and Current Situation of East Asian Non-government Exchanges” with the participation of over 60 scholars from China, Japan, South Korea and America was held in Zhejiang University on 14th and 15th, May. The symposium conducted fruitful academic exchanges on the history and development of non-government exchanges in East Asian countries.

On the morning of 14th May, President of the South Korean Academy of Social Sciences, a scholar from Kyoto University of Japan, Hu Qingyuan from University of Hawaii, America and a scholar from Yanbian University delivered keynote speeches on East Asian New Order and Relationship between the South Korea and China, Ancient Books and Chinese and Japanese Cultural Exchanges, East Asian Research Approach in Hawaii University and Non-government Exchanges between China, the DPRK and South Korea respectively. On the afternoon of 14th and the morning of 15th, scholars conducted discussions in depth in two groups: Chinese and Japanese scholars as well as Chinese and South Korean scholars. They expressed their views on the present dilemmas and obstacles in the non-government exchanges between China, Japan and South Korea, Chinese and Japanese poetry exchanges, the role of foreign students in the East Asian cultural exchanges, advancing economic cooperation between China, the DPRK and South Korea and promoting free trade agreements.

After the symposium, scholars visited HuiyinKoreanTemple and the old site of Korean Provisional Government in Hangzhou for cultural investigations and for refreshing the memories of long-standing friendship between China and Korea.

(Written by Sun Anping; translated by Xu Xueying)