The Chinese People’s Institute of Foreign Affairs (CPIFA) was established on December 15, 1949, the same year of the founding of the People’s Republic of China. As the first institute devoted to people-to-people diplomacy of the PRC, CPIFA was founded at the initiative of the late Premier Zhou Enlai. Premier Zhou Enlai and the late Vice Premier Chen Yi both once served as the Honorary President of the Institute.

The purposes of CPIFA are to enhance people-to-people friendship, to facilitate state-to-state relations, and to pursue world peace, development and cooperation. To this end, CPIFA takes the initiative to establish and maintain relations with prestigious political and social activists, parliaments, think tanks, media, etc., to carry out dialogues and communications on bilateral relations, major international and regional issues based on the exchange mechanism of Track II diplomacy, to conduct public diplomacy activities by hosting and organizing some major forums and conferences, to study international situation and foreign policies, and to publish the English quarterly journal, Foreign Affairs Journal.

Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China (CPC), guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era and Xi Jinping Thought on Diplomacy, CPIFA is committed to “making friends for the country” by taking concerted actions with China’s overall diplomacy, expanding foreign exchanges, telling Chinese stories, promoting interaction between China and the rest of the world, and facilitating the building of a community with a shared future for mankind.

To date, CPIFA has hosted the visits of over 30,000 guests of 4,000 plus delegations including foreign prestigious statesmen, parliament members, think tanks, media, etc. The Institute maintains contacts with famous statesmen, diplomats, social activists, entrepreneurs, experts and scholars on international studies from over 120 countries and has established more than 20 bilateral dialogue and exchange mechanisms.