Shanghai, New York hold themed dialogues on urban cooperation

NEW YORK, July 1 (Xinhua) -- Chinese business hub Shanghai and its U.S. counterpart New York recently held a series of dialogues here to bolster exchanges between the two global metropolises.

A launch ceremony was held on Tuesday in Manhattan for the third season of "Our Water: Flowing from Shanghai - Intercultural Dialogues among World Cities," followed by a fireside chat and panel discussions on bilateral financial investment and opportunities in consumer markets.

Both Shanghai and New York are great waterfront cities and cultural, commercial and culinary capitals, according to former New York mayor and media mogul Michael Bloomberg.

"Great cities just don't compete with each other. They learn from each other. And that kind of exchange between cities has never been more important," said Bloomberg at the function.

The dialogue promotes sharing ideas, added Bloomberg, who hosted the event on Tuesday.

The friendly exchanges and mutual learning between these two cities vividly illustrate how China and the United States can achieve mutual success and shared prosperity, said Tang Zhiwen, minister at the Chinese Embassy in the United States.

Shanghai and New York could set a benchmark for mutually beneficial cooperation in China-U.S. economic and trade ties, said Tang in addressing the audience at the ceremony.

The two cities could also take the lead in cooperation on emerging frontiers, such as artificial intelligence, climate change and smart cities, and contribute to enriching the substance of a constructive China-U.S. relationship of strategic stability, he added.

Moreover, scholars, artists and students from the two cities joined a roundtable dialogue at the China Institute of America on how culture, education and technology can enhance mutual understanding.