２０ｔｈ Ａｎｎｉｖｅｒｓａｒｙ ｏｆ Ｆｒｉｅｎｄｓｈｉｐ－Ｃｉｔｙ Ｒｅｌａｔｉｏｎｓ Ｂｅｔｗｅｅｎ Ｇｕａｎｇｚｈｏｕ ａｎｄ Ｆｒａｎｋｆｕｒｔ Ｃｅｌｅｂｒａｔｅｄ

Guangzhou and Frankfurt established the friendship-city ties in 1988. The relationship has stood the test of time and drastic changes in the world， and traversed an extraordinary course. Over the last 20 years， exchanges between the two cities have reaped fruitful results in the fields of economy， culture， education， sports， etc. In 2008， with the joint efforts of both sides， mayors of Guangzhou and Frankfurt successfully exchanged visits and launched in their respective cities a series of activities to celebrate the 20th anniversary of their twinning in their respective cities， which has pushed their friendly relations to a new starting point.

In April 2008， headed by Ms. Petra Roth， mayor of Frankfurt， and Mr. Karlheinz Buehrmann， president of the City Parliament Frankfurt， a large delegation consisting of representatives from the government， city parliament and circles of economy， trade and culture visited Guangzhou. “Frankfurt by the Pearl River”—Celebrations for the 20th anniversary of twinning between Guangzhou and Frankfurt were held. In her address at the opening ceremony， Mayor Roth said， despite the vast distance and diverse history and culture， people of the two cities have formed a sincere and profound friendship with a common wish to enhance mutual understanding and friendship and seek cooperation and development. She hoped that Guangzhou citizens would fully experience the open and diversified cultures of Frankfurt through the celebrations “Frankfurt by the Pearl River”.

During the celebrations， the city of Frankfurt held 15 activities， including a symphony concert， Frankfurt Art Exhibition “Man and Environment”， the Exhibition of Works by Frankfurt Artists with disability， the Photo Exhibition “Goethe and the Flora World”， and sports games between Chinese and German schools， which covered the fields of economy， trade， culture， education and environmental protection. These activities aroused the enthusiasm of the people in Guangzhou to learn about Frankfurt.

In November 2008， the Guangzhou Municipal Government Delegation led by Mayor Zhang Guangning visited Frankfurt and held “Guangzhou by the Main”—Celebrations for the 20th anniversary of the twinning between Guangzhou and Frankfurt. Wide-ranging and multi-level exchanges and activities with strong Chinese elements also started a Guangzhou craze in Frankfurt in early winter.

On the morning of November 26， in the Emperor’s Hall inside Frankfurt City Hall， Mayor Zhang Guangning had a cordial meeting with Mayor Roth. They reviewed the development of friendly relations between the two cities and witnessed， together with over one hundred Chinese and German personages， the signing of the agreements on the establishment of friendship-district relations between Yuexiu of Guangzhou and Nordend of Frankfurt， friendly and cooperative relations between the Bureau of Foreign Trade and Economic Cooperation of Guangzhou and the Frankfurt Economic Development GmbH， and cooperative relations between CCPIT Guangzhou Sub-Council and Messe Frankfurt Exhibition GmbH. Later at the unveiling ceremony of the Five-Ram Statue presented by Guangzhou to Frankfurt， Mayor Zhang Guangning said that although separated by thousands of miles， Guangzhou and Frankfurt have had a close relationship for a long time and gained great achievements in friendly cooperation in economy and trade， culture and other areas. The agreements on economic and exhibition cooperation and the friendship-district ties will push the friendship-city relationship to a new stage， create new opportunities for the growth of economy and trade between Asia and Europe， and build a new platform for nongovernmental friendly exchanges.

During the celebrations， events such as the Guangzhou Modern Service Industry Promotion Conference and the Photo Exhibition “Guangzhou People’s Life” attracted even more attention. On the evening of November 26， the Guangzhou Gala was grandiously performed in Jahrhunderhalle in Frankfurt. With over 2，300 people present in the theatre， Mayor Zhang Guangning and Mayor Roth lit together a traditional Chinese lantern symbolizing “happiness and joy” and presented commemorative German marriage certificates to 20 pairs of newlyweds from Guangzhou. The large-scale acrobatic drama Journey to the West， which won Splendour Award， the top award for professional theatrical artworks in China， drew forth waves of applause and cheers from the audience with its marvelous performance. The warm and exciting atmosphere pushed the celebration of the 20th anniversary of friendship-city ties between Guangzhou and Frankfurt to a climax again.

Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung， Frankfurter Rundschau， Frankfurter Neue Presse， Guangzhou Daily and Guangzhou TV Station reported the spectacular 20th anniversary celebrations and looked forward to a better future of the friendship-city relations between the two cities.