Shanghai and Hamburg Set For the Next 40 Years of Being Sister Cities

Direct flights, deeper economic cooperation and more cultural exchanges are on the agenda of Hamburg and Shanghai, which are celebrating their 40th anniversary of sister-city relationship.

"The relationship between Shanghai and Hamburg serves as an excellent example for how Sino-Europe relations can develop in a positive way based on mutual trust," Peter Tschentscher, First Mayor of Hamburg – the largest port city in Germany and the third-largest in Europe – said in Shanghai on Friday.

Tschentscher led a political, economic and scientific delegation on a visit to Shanghai this week, focusing on direct air links, maritime trade, health care and scientific innovation as well as people-to-people exchanges, when celebrating the anniversary.

He visited the China Eastern Airlines on Thursday to discuss about the possibility of opening direct flights between the two cities, which would further facilitate personnel exchanges and promote economic, trade, cultural and tourism cooperation.

During the two-day trip, Tschentscher also went to the Shanghai University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, participated the launch ceremony of the Joint Laboratory for Climate Science-Enabled Engineering between FIS China and Hamburg University of Technology in Qingpu District, viewed the exhibition "A Meeting Across Thousands of Miles, Neighbors by Sea and Land – A Tale of Two Cities: Shanghai and Hamburg" held in the Shanghai History Museum, and met with Shanghai Party Secretary Chen Jining.

It was Tschentscher's second visit to Shanghai as the mayor of Hamburg and he praised the fast development in Shanghai and in China.

"We are excited and confident to enter the next phase of 40 years of being sister-city with Shanghai, not averse to competition because stay open is what builds up the strength of both Shanghai and Hamburg," Tschentscher said in an interview.