On Sept 27, Vice President TANG Hua-jun met with Professor Ulrich Kuhlmann from Germany and Professor Eric Van Ranst from Belgium, who won the 2012 Chinese Government Friendship Award.

On behalf of CAAS, TANG extended his congratulations and thanks to the experts for their extraordinary contribution to the academy’s international exchanges. As China keeps reform and opening-up, CAAS has been engaged in various international communications and exchanges with a large number of foreign institutions and experts. TANG said CAAS would continue to improve the working condition for foreign experts so as to attract more talents from abroad to cooperate with CAAS.

After the meeting, Ulrich Kuhlmann and Eric Van Ranst gave lectures respectively on “Strengthen International Cooperation to Cope with Biological Invasion” and “20 Years of Cooperation between the University of Ghent and the CAAS”.

The Chinese Government Friendship Award is the top honor for overseas experts who have made outstanding contributions to China’s modernization, reform and opening-up. Since the award was launched in 1991, nine experts recommended by the CAAS have won the prize.