Silk Road mayors relink and update historic ties   

“丝绸之路”11国19市长聚会国际旅游合作成热点

中新社西安5月28日电 (张一辰)28日，来自丝绸之路沿线11个国家19个城市的市长(代表)会聚西安，就国家及城市间文化、旅游、经贸、科技等方面的交流与合作展开会晤，期间将签署《2012“丝绸之路”城市市长会晤宣言》。

Xi'an (CNS) -- Nineteen mayors and their representatives from eleven countries along the Silk Road gathered in Xi'an city, Shaanxi Province on Monday and inked the 2012 Mayors' Declaration of Cities on the Silk Road.

The eleven countries are China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Egypt, Turkey, Italy, India and Montenegro.

The mayorial meeting is themed "friendship for generations; creating common prosperity." It aims to enhance exchanges and cooperation among the cities in the areas of culture, tourism, economy, trade, science and technology. Tourism cooperation is a major focus.

The Silk Road refers to the historical network of interlinked communities on trade routes across the Afro-Eurasian landmass. They connected East, South, and Western Asia with the Mediterranean and European world, as well as parts of North and East Africa.

Extending some 6,500 km, the Silk Road gets its name from the lucrative Chinese silk trade that originally defined it, which began during the Han Dynasty (206 BCE – 220 CE). The central Asian sections of the trade routes were expanded around 114 BCE by the Han dynasty, largely through the missions and explorations of Zhang Qian.