Athens, Ga. – Chinese scholar and retired Gen. Pan Zhenqiang will be at the University of Georgia Feb. 14-March 15 to give a series of workshops and panels with UGA faculty as well as to help establish the U.S.-China New Relationship Colloquium.
The colloquium is a cooperative initiative among the Center for International Trade and Security at the UGA School of Public and International Affairs, the China Reform Forum and China’s Central University of Finance and Economics. It is designed to stimulate economic and cultural exchange between Beijing and Washington, D.C. by working at both the international and local people-to-people levels.
“We are pleased to welcome Gen. Pan Zhenqiang to our campus, and see his visit as part of UGA’s growing international presence, a presence that not only enhances educational opportunities for our students, but is also likely to exert a positive economic impact for the Atlanta region and the state of Georgia,” said UGA President Jere W. Morehead.
The first official meeting of the U.S.-China New Relationship Colloquium will take place in Beijing on May 12-14, with subsequent colloquia rotating between the U.S. and China on a biannual basis. Over the past 18 months, Pan has worked with William Keller, the director of CITS, on the colloquium project. His visit to UGA will help foster relations between key think tanks and businesses in the U.S. and China.
“It is important that the people of China and of the Atlanta region come to know one another and appreciate their mutual opportunities,” said Pan. “There are many critical issues in the areas of trade and security that can only be addressed if an atmosphere of trust can be established.”
Pan served in the People’s Liberation Army from 1963 until his retirement in 2001. As an expert on China’s foreign policy, he is currently senior adviser to the China Foundation for International Studies, senior adviser to the China Reform Forum and research director at the Institute for Strategy and Management of the Central University of Finance and Economics in China. He is also a member of the Council of Pugwash Conferences on Science and World Affairs.
Pan’s visit is sponsored by the Office of the President of the University of Georgia, the School of Public and International Affairs and CITS. The colloquium was made possible through a grant to UGA from the Ford Foundation’s Beijing office.
CITS
The Center for International Trade and Security at the UGA School of Public and International Affairs has worked extensively with Chinese government agencies and NGOs to address the threat of weapons of mass destruction, and to prevent the proliferation of dangerous technologies and materials. The center also promotes better relations with China through its Norinco Student Ambassador Program, which sponsors the exchange of two UGA students and two Chinese university students every year. For more information, see http://cits.uga.edu.
