The "Joined Hands, Shared Future" Beijing International Model United Nations (BIMUN) 2023, hosted by China Foreign Affairs University, officially commenced in Beijing on Thursday. The conference was attended by approximately 700 students and teachers from over 150 schools and colleges. Distinguished representatives from various educational institutions will engage in four days of discussions on pressing global issues, offering their youthful perspectives and proposing solutions in accordance with the rules of procedure of the United Nations.

Photos provided to the People's Daily

During the opening ceremony, Ambassador Cui Qiming, CPC Committee secretary of China Foreign Affairs University, and Jiang Duan, envoy of the Department of International Organizations and Conferences of the Foreign Ministry, delivered speeches.

Attendees present at the ceremony included Pang Sen, former vice president and secretary-general of the UN Association of China, and former Chinese ambassador to Iran, Wu Zejian, former Chinese ambassador to the Lebanese Republic and professor at the Department of Foreign Language and International Studies of China Foreign Affairs University. Additionally, diplomatic envoys from Russia and Cambodia stationed in China were in attendance.

This year's conference will also host the Second General Assembly of the National Model United Nations Conference for High School Students and the Seventh Annual Conference of the China University Model United Nations Association. Outstanding delegates will be invited to participate in the "Enter the United Nations" Outstanding Youth Program, supported by the Beijing Wu Jianmin Public Welfare Foundation.

Participants will have the unique opportunity to directly interact with officials from the United Nations and other international organizations in Switzerland and other countries. This hands-on experience will provide them with firsthand knowledge of the actual functioning of international organizations and allow them to experience the essence of multilateral diplomacy.

In 1995, China Foreign Affairs University introduced Model United Nations activities to China for the first time. As the most renowned Model United Nations event in China and the Asia-Pacific region, BIMUN has consistently grown and innovated. Over the past two decades, BIMUN has compiled the book "Theory and Practice of Model United Nations," with the aim of promoting the professionalization and academic advancement of Model United Nations activities.

Simultaneously, the conference endeavors to innovate its organizational format by employing the "Beijing Rules of Procedure," pioneered by the Model United Nations Association of China Foreign Affairs University. These efforts contribute to creating an enhanced conference experience for the participants.

It is anticipated that this conference will further inspire young individuals to engage in profound contemplation of international issues, shoulder their historical responsibilities, meet the expectations of the present era, embody the concept of a shared future for mankind, contribute their diplomatic acumen to China's international relations and global governance, and actively participate in the country's foreign affairs and global governance initiatives.