In 1981, the city of Akashi in Japan and Wuxi became sister cities, and as a result throughout the 1980s and 90s hundreds of Japanese businesses came to settle in the east Chinese city.

To mark the 35th anniversary of becoming sister cities this year, the mayors of the two cities attended a celebration honoring the many achievements of the past decades.

Wuxi mayor Wang Quan and Fusaho Izumi, mayor of Akashi, attended the celebration entitled "the 35th anniversary ceremony of friendship and cooperation of Wuxi-Akashi" on Aug 29, Wuxi Daily reported.

In the past 35 years, Wuxi has sent a string of research groups to Akashi to learn more about infrastructure construction, road administration, agricultural technology, finance, environmental protection, gardening and disaster prevention. Most of those group members now work for the Wuxi government in key roles.

Wang extended his congratulation for the 35-year friendship with Akashi and welcomed a delegation of more than 40 representatives from Japan. He said that Wuxi and Akashi share close ties in cultural, economic and trade exchanges, which contributes to the friendship between China and Japan. He hoped the two can further cooperation in more fields in future.

Izumi said that he has visited Wuxi every year since he assumed office in 2011. He voiced his determination to promote bilateral exchanges, especially exchanges among teenagers.