Published on: 2026-05-24
Source: People’s Republic of China in Russian –
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Beijing, May 24 /Xinhua/ — On Saturday, an international seminar on Russian studies was held at Beijing Pedagogical University (BPU), with the theme “The Soft Power of China and Russia in the Context of Russian Studies: Theory and Practice.”
Experts and scientists from various academic circles of China, Russia, and Germany participated in the event, discussing the significance, theoretical foundations, and practical experience of implementing national soft power in China and Russia.
The vice-rector of PSU, Chen Xin, noted that today the world is undergoing unprecedented changes in a hundred years. The balance of power on the international stage, the system of global governance, and a new wave of scientific and technological revolution are undergoing profound transformations. In this context, the importance of national soft power is becoming increasingly evident.
Professor of the Institute of Foreign Languages and Literature of PSU and Director of the Scientific Research Center for the Study of Russia at PSU, Liu Ciyuan, emphasized that the “soft power” is not a metaphor, it is a philosophical concept of world order. According to her, holding this seminar fits perfectly within the framework of the intersection of the Years of Education of China and Russia. And close interaction between Chinese and Russian scholars is very important for promoting humanitarian exchanges and ties between the two countries.
The Director of the Institute of Russia, Eastern Europe and Central Asia of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Sun Zhuanzhi stated that with the development of science and technology and the improvement of transportation, cultural and humanitarian cooperation and non-governmental exchanges are becoming increasingly convenient, deeply penetrating all aspects of interstate relations and becoming an integral and important part in them.
In my opinion, according to Elena Zavyalova, Head of the Department of Economic Policy and Public-Private Partnership at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation, ‘soft power’ is a complex set of tools for solving foreign policy tasks relying on the capabilities of civil society, informational-communication, humanitarian, and other alternative classical diplomacy methods and technologies.
Professor of the Department of Economic Theory at MGIMO Irina Strelets said that education can and should be considered as an instrument of “soft power,” and joint research is an important component of this instrument. Modern conditions require not only purely professional knowledge and skills, but also broad flexible skills.
This seminar was organized jointly by the Scientific Research Center for the Study of Russia of the PPFU and MGIMO.
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