BEIJING, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping sent a congratulatory letter to the fifth annual conference of the Taihu World Cultural Forum which opened in Beijing on Thursday.

The conference, themed "Dialogue of Civilizations: Building a Community With a Shared Future for Humanity," should help improve understanding, accumulate consensus, deepen cooperation and promote exchanges and mutual learning among civilizations, Xi said in the letter.

The exchange and mutual learning among civilizations has been a key impetus for civilization advancement of mankind as well as world peace and development, he said.

"China is willing to work with international community for mutual respect and harmonious co-existence among different civilizations," Xi said.

"Learning from one another among civilizations should play a constructive part in building a community with a shared future for humanity. All sides should share development opportunities and cope with challenges together for a better world," he said.