Chinese Vice President XI Jinping attended the opening ceremony of the 2009 UCLG World Council Meeting & Guangzhou International Sister Cities Conference, which gathered more than 1,000 representatives from about 210 cities and local organizations of more than 60 nations.

The Chinese Vice President said the UCLG has become an important platform for multilateral exchanges and cooperation as well as a bridge of friendship for global cities. He believed that the UCLG would be able to integrate wisdom and strength of urban planning and management from different nations, and play a positive role in promoting peace and development of the world.

He called on the UCLG members to deepen pragmatic cooperation in the areas such as economy, trade, science and technology, in order to boost the recovery of the world economy and achieve mutual benefits and win-win results.