China will work with the international community to overcome misunderstandings with exchanges, replace clashes with mutual learning, and substitute coexistence for cultural condescension in its handling of relations among civilizations, the Foreign Ministry said on Monday.
“When it comes to civilizations, all countries should uphold the principles of equality, mutual learning, dialogue and inclusiveness, and reject the misguided belief in a clash of civilizations or the superiority of one civilization over another,” spokesman Geng Shuang said at a daily news briefing.
He made the remark after Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos said earlier in an interview that peace can only be consolidated through peaceful coexistence, which cannot be achieved without dialogue between civilizations.
“Real civilizations do not collide, they simply sometimes lose communication with each other. We must restore this communication,” Pavlopoulos said.
“We live in troubled and dangerous times,” he added, saying that the only way to defend all of mankind in such times is through dialogue between civilizations.
He said that Greece and China are two ancient civilizations with their own deep roots, and also share some common values and ideals.
“East and West have many more things that unite us than separate us,” he said, noting that Greece and China together can set an example of how dialogue between civilizations can contribute to world peace.
China highly appreciates the Greek president’s opinions, Geng said, adding that respect for cultural diversity is the precondition of world peace and harmony, and carrying out dialogue provides important guarantees for peaceful coexistence.
Pavlopoulos is on a five-day state visit to China until Thursday, and he will also attend the Conference on Dialogue of Asian Civilizations in Beijing.
Noting that both China and Greece are inheritors of original civilizations, he said bilateral relations are setting an example of peaceful coexistence and win-win cooperation between countries with different systems and cultures, Geng said.
Xinhua contributed to this story.
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