Confucianism does not only belong to China, but it belongs to the whole world, noted Ainura Temirbekova, deputy minister of Culture, Information and Tourism of the Kyrgyz Republic while underscoring the significance of protecting and spreading the traditional culture worldwide.

Temirbekova made the remarks last Sunday amid a tour to Qufu, the birthplace of Confucius, in Shandong province after attending the just concluded first SCO Media Summit.

Roughly 40 representatives and media chiefs from the SCO countries including Russia, India, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Pakistan and Afghanistan participated in the visit, which served as a platform to deepen the understandings of traditional Chinese culture represented by Confucianism with some basic tenets, such as benevolence and righteousness.

"In the context of accelerated globalization and informatization, culture plays a significant role in connecting the hearts and minds of people, while also being an effective instrument to settle wars or disputes across the world," said the minister in an exclusive interview with China Daily.

All countries across the globe, she added, ought to follow China's footsteps and beef up more efforts in traditional culture's conservation and inheritance.

Also attaching great importance to the media exchanges among the SCO countries, the Kyrgyzstan minister pointed out that it is the media that transmit news and information, and shine spotlights on the development of nations.

Echoing Temirbekova, Priyanka Tikoo, deputy executive editor of the Press Trust of India, considered that the opportunities presented by Chinese government to strengthen media exchanges are absolutely desirable.

"Whatever the made efforts are by the respective governments, it is the media that talks about those stories, efforts, and public negotiations made by them," she said.

As the largest news agency in India, PTI reached a bilateral agreement with China's Xinhua News Agency around ten years ago, according to Tikoo.

"Apart from the exchange of news, we also have exchange programs of journalists with Xinhua as well as the publicity department of Chinese government," she said.

Meanwhile, some of the media delegation expressed their hopes that the cooperative areas their countries have with China would be expanded further in the future.

Sobir Shukurov, first deputy general director of the Press and Information Agency of Uzbekistan, told China Daily that Uzbekistan aspires to advance the collaboration and exchanges with China in fields of economy, trade, culture as well as media. He also hoped that the two countries further the cooperation on tourism by visa facilitation.

"In my country there is a sage similar to Confucius, and in his hometown, an exchange program for the teachers nationwide takes place annually," said Ainura Temirbekova, suggesting that a seminar for the teachers from Kyrgyzstan and China be launched to boost cultural and educational communications between the two countries.

Proposed by Chinese president Xi Jinping in June last year at the SCO Astana summit in Kazakhstan, the first SCO Media Summit took place in Beijing on June 1, with the theme "upholding Shanghai Spirit for a new era of media cooperation".

Representatives and media chiefs from the SCO countries including Russia, India, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Pakistan and Afghanistan, pose for a group photo in front of the statue of Confucius in Qufu, East China's Shandong province on June 3. [Photo by Xiang Wenjian/chinadaily.com.cn]

Ainura Temirbekova, deputy minister of Culture, Information and Tourism of the Kyrgyz Republic (right, second) takes a group photo with a group of young children in traditional Chinese costumes. [Photo by Wang Qian/chinadaily.com.cn]