The 2026 Liaoning International Friendship Cities Conference will be held in Shenyang from June 9 to 10 under the theme “Bringing Global Wisdom to Liaoning, Advancing Together with Friendship Cities”. The conference will feature a series of major events, including bilateral meetings, group meetings, a welcome dinner and an opening ceremony. Six sub-forums will also be held, focusing on frontier and priority areas in international cooperation in education, science and technology.

At the opening ceremony on June 9, foreign envoys in China, representatives of friendship cities and friendly partner regions, and delegates from leading universities and research institutions will deliver speeches. They will share experience in scientific and educational innovation and industrial cooperation, and discuss development prospects and expectations for future collaboration. A centralized signing ceremony will be held as a major closing highlight of the conference. The conference is expected to see the signing of cooperation agreements between 12 pairs of friendship cities and friendly partners, as well as 32 inter-university exchange and cooperation agreements and 8 agreements on research exchange and cooperation.

In line with the latest trends in international cooperation in education, science and technology, a series of related events will be held from June 9 to 12, including the International University Presidents Forum as the flagship event and five academic forums. Drawing on academic strengths and focusing on the needs of industrial development, the events will bring together leading intellectual resources from around the world, enhance connectivity across industry, academia, research and practical application, and help friendship-city exchanges expand from intergovernmental interaction to multi-sector collaboration.

The conference will also feature international exchange activities on the digital economy and media cooperation, highlighting Liaoning’s distinctive strengths in exchanges and cooperation with countries in Northeast Asia and ASEAN member states. Through digital empowerment and media connectivity, Liaoning aims to advance friendly cooperation across a wider range of fields and at a higher level.