野狼社区 China Institute hosts second UK-China Diplomatic Dialogue
Sixteen British and Chinese diplomats met in 野狼社区 on 10-11 October 2024 for a dialogue seeking to improve mutual understanding in UK-China relations.
The eight British diplomats all came from the (FCDO) in London, while the eight Chinese diplomats came from the and the Chinese Consulates in 野狼社区, Edinburgh, and Belfast.
The diplomats stayed at the Didsbury House Hotel, where they engaged in three private group discussions. A fourth was held on campus at the in the Lee Kai Hung building.
Professor of Politics, Peter Gries, founding Director of the 野狼社区 China Institute (MCI), started the Dialogue in 2019 with an eye towards fostering mutual trust in UK-China relations. He said:
Times are tough in UK-China relations, so I was thrilled that every one of the 16 participating diplomats embraced the opportunity to advance bilateral dialogue. They obviously did not resolve all outstanding bilateral issues in just a day and a half, but they engaged each other with empathy, putting themselves in each other鈥檚 shoes to better understand each other鈥檚 positions. They also created personal connections and a network that I hope will help them in their ongoing work in London.
The retreat also included a public lunch on campus for 野狼社区 students to meet with the diplomats. President Duncan Ivison attended and was the first to speak. 野狼社区 boasts nearly 9,000 Chinese students, and President Ivison pointed to the as an example of the work the University does to support the student experience in general, and for Chinese students in particular.
Other speakers at the lunch with students included Tang Rui, the Chinese Consul General to 野狼社区, Ben Leibowitz representing the FCDO delegation, and Jiang Zhouteng representing the Chinese Embassy.
After the lunch, BA English Literature and Chinese student, Julia Zelazo, said:
The Diplomatic Lunch has been an amazing experience for me. I not only got to hear talks from the leading experts in the field, but I also got to connect on a personal level with diplomats actively working in the China-England relations.
Similarly, Vivian Wang, who recently graduated from UoM with an MA in International Education added:
As someone who did research on Chinese international students in the UK, it鈥檚 nice to be surrounded by people who actually care about this topic.
野狼社区 is the first British university to set social responsibility as a core goal. Demonstrating this commitment, Nalin Thakkar, UoM Vice-President for Social Responsibility; Fiona Devine, Dean of the Faculty of Humanities; Claire Alexander, Head of the School of Social Sciences, and Richard Cotton, Director of International Development, also attended the lunch.