PARIS, June 14 -- Visiting editor-in-chief of Xinhua News Agency He Ping met with Irina Bokova, Director-General of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), at the UNESCO headquarters here on Wednesday, calling for further strategic cooperation between the two sides.

As the state news agency of China and an international news agency, Xinhua will deepen its strategic cooperation with the UNESCO to better play its role of bridge and link in promoting exchanges and mutual learning between different cultures and enhancing understanding among different peoples, He said.

Bokova noted that the UNESCO admires the significance of the Belt and Road Initiative in promoting civilization exchanges and enhancing trust among different countries and regions. She emphasized that Xinhua News Agency is an important partner of UNESCO and expressed hope for closer cooperation in fields such as inter-cultural exchanges and sustainable development.

The Xinhua editor-in-chief during the Paris tour also met with AFP global news director Michele Leridon and visited Le Figaro, Le Monde, France 24, the 6Medias new media corporation and French Institute of International Relations.