BEIJING, Feb. 20 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping has replied to a letter from Professor Stelios Virvidakis of the University of Athens and four other Greek scholars recently, extending congratulations over the founding of the Center of Chinese and Greek Ancient Civilizations.

Hailing the long history of the Chinese civilization and profound influence of the ancient Greek civilization, Xi said in the letter that more than 2,000 years ago, the two civilizations shone brightly on the two ends of the Eurasian continent, jointly making a fundamental contribution to the evolution of human civilization.

Now, it is of great historical and contemporary significance for the two countries to establish the center, which is committed to promoting exchanges and mutual learning between the two civilizations and promoting the development of civilizations of various countries, said Xi.

Xi stressed that in the long course of human history, various nations have created civilizations with their own characteristics and symbols, which jointly form a colorful garden of human civilization.

Civilizations are the rich accumulation of the historical exploration and also an underlying guide to the survival and development of the nations, he said.

In order to promote the development of human society and jointly build a community with a shared future for mankind, we must deeply understand and grasp the age-old origins and rich contents of different civilizations and let the essence of all civilizations benefit the present generation and all mankind, he said.

Xi said he believes that the center will certainly make a great contribution in this regard.

Xi pointed out that people can know the present by making references to the past and they often carry forward the undertakings of the predecessors to open up a new path for the future.

History has amply proved that human civilization can continue to thrive and prosper by sticking to inclusiveness and openness, the Chinese president said.

The world today is undergoing profound changes unseen in a century, Xi said, adding that to solve outstanding contradictions and problems facing the mankind, it is necessary to rely on material means to overcome difficulties and rely on the strength of the spirit to rectify mind through thinking with sincerity.

The values, as well as views of the world, universe, life, science, and culture contained in Chinese and Greek civilizations are profound and timeless, and are sure to provide important spiritual guidance for mankind to solve the problems of the times and promote the building of a community with a shared future.

During his state visit to Greece in 2019, Xi and the Greek leaders jointly advocated exchanges and mutual learning between civilizations. After the visit, the two sides actively implemented the consensus of the leaders and made preparations for the establishment of the Center of Chinese and Greek Ancient Civilizations.

A few days ago, five Greek scholars, including Professor Virvidakis, wrote a joint letter to Xi, in which they expressed in great length their high recognition of the concept of civilization advocated by Xi and introduced preparations and development plans of the center.

The center was launched on Monday at the University of Athens.