Li Shulei, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, attends and delivers a speech at the Thematic Forum on Think Tank Exchange of the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation in Beijing, capital of China, Oct. 18, 2023. (Xinhua/Liu Bin)

A thematic forum on think tank exchanges was held Wednesday in Beijing as a part of the third Belt and Road Forum for International Cooperation (BRF).

Li Shulei, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, attended the forum and delivered a speech.

The participants spoke highly of the important role played by think tanks and fully affirmed the practical results of international think tank cooperation and exchanges under the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

The eight major steps put forward by Chinese President Xi Jinping to support high-quality Belt and Road cooperation on Wednesday will surely inject strong impetus into the development of the BRI, the participants said, calling for deepening research and cooperation of think tanks to help promote high-quality Belt and Road cooperation into a new stage.

The thematic forum was hosted by the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee and jointly organized by Xinhua News Agency, China Center for International Economic Exchanges, and China Public Diplomacy Association. It attracted about 200 people from home and abroad to engage in in-depth discussions.