中国·福州——热爱城市从热爱美食开始

Visitors from Tacoma attend the photo exhibition.

On June 24, the opening ceremony of a photo exhibition commemorating the 30th anniversary of the sister-city relationship between Fuzhou and Tacoma was held in Fuzhou. The exhibition aims to review the remarkable history of friendly exchanges between the two cities and highlight the fruitful outcomes of their cooperation.

The exhibition is divided into four sections: Historical Moments, Governmental Exchanges, People-to-People Exchanges, and Economic and Trade Exchanges. It showcases precious historical photographs, including those reflecting President Xi Jinping’s personal efforts to promote friendly ties between the two cities. Key highlights include Fuzhou’s donation of the “Fuzhou Ting” to Tacoma, the establishment of the Joint Committee for Cooperation and Development, the formation of dragon boat teams across the Pacific, youth exchanges, and the promotion of bilateral trade through the mutual dispatch of economic and trade delegations. The exhibition was planned and designed by the Fuzhou Daily.

Fuzhou, a coastal city in southeastern China, and Tacoma, a port city in Washington State, USA, established a sister-city relationship in 1994, an initiative personally promoted by Xi Jinping, who was then the Secretary of the CPC Fuzhou Municipal Committee.

With the establishment of the sister-city relationship, Fuzhou and Tacoma have sent delegations to each other to participate in economic and trade talks and exhibitions multiple times. In 2008, they signed a memorandum of understanding on the mutual dispatch of economic and trade delegations, achieving direct bilateral trade of USD 450,000 and a trade contract value of USD 1.57 million over one and a half years. In 2019, the Fuzhou Free Trade Zone Management Committee and the World Trade Center Tacoma signed a cooperation agreement, under which they carried out multiple online and offline exchanges and cooperation and actively guided business matching between the two cities.

Besides significant progress in economic and trade relations, the two cities have also fostered rich and dynamic people-to-people exchanges, with frequent highlights. In the area of youth and educational exchanges, the Affiliated High School of Fuzhou Institute of Education and Lincoln High School, Fuzhou Senior High School and Stadium High School, as well as Fuzhou Polytechnic and Bates Technical College, have established sister-school relationships, engaging in a variety of youth exchange activities.

In addition, cultural exchanges between the two cities have flourished. Over the past 30 years, events such as the dragon boat races and the International Sister City Cultural Festival have painted a vivid picture of their people-to-people ties. In September 2019, “Fuzhou Day” & the 25th Anniversary of the Establishment of Sister-City Relationship were held in Tacoma, further enhancing the local community’s understanding of Fuzhou.

By forging ties with Tacoma, Fuzhou has opened another window to the world, accelerating its pace of opening up and showcasing the real and open Fuzhou to the world.

In September 2019, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the establishment of a sister-city relationship, Fuzhou and Tacoma signed the Agreement on the Establishment of the Joint Committee for Cooperation and Development, establishing a normalized consultation and cooperation mechanism for coordinating friendly exchanges and pragmatic cooperation in areas such as economy and trade, culture, education, and sports.

Over the past 30 years, Fuzhou and Tacoma have conducted fruitful exchanges and cooperation in the fields of economy and trade, culture, education, and sports. Their exchanges have become increasingly close, and the friendship between their people has deepened. The sister-city relationship between Fuzhou and Tacoma has grown stronger over time, remaining both enduring and vibrant. (Fuzhou Evening News Reporter: Ma Liqing/Text; Zou Jiahua/Photo)