The Third China-ASEAN Young-and-Middle-Aged Military Officers Friendship Exchange, hosted by China’s Ministry of National Defense and organized by National University of Defense Technology, was successfully held recently. More than 20 young-and-middle-aged military officers and civilian staff members from 9 countries including ASEAN countries and East Timor, gathered with NUDT students and teachers to exchange ideas on building a China-ASEAN community with a shared future. During the exchange, the delegation also travelled from China’s southwest to southeast to visit Kunming of Yunnan Province and Kunshan of Jiangsu Province and Shanghai to carry out a series of activities.
While the key to state-to-state relations lies in close bonds between peoples, efforts to this end must start from the youth. This event created an international exchange platform where NUDT students developed a closer connection with ASEAN young-and-middle-aged military officers and experienced the diversity of military cultures. With the 8-day exchange, bridges of friendship were built among the countries to combine the great strength of younger generation for building a closer China-ASEAN community with a shared future.
