Shanghai wins international friendship city award

Shanghai received the International Friendship City Award for Outstanding Contribution at the 2026 China International Friendship Cities Conference held in Xi'an, Shaanxi province.

The conference presented the award to 20 Chinese cities and provinces, while 40 foreign cities and regions received the Friendship City Award for Outstanding Partnership with China. Hamburg, Shanghai's friendship city in Germany, was among the recipients of that award.

More than 700 guests from 61 countries attended the three-day event from Oct 20 to 22, representing more than 100 provinces and states, over 140 cities, and more than 60 local government and friendship organizations.

To date, Shanghai has established friendship-city ties at the municipal or district levels with 96 cities or regions in 60 countries.

Shanghai and Hamburg established friendship-city relations in 1986 and are marking their 40th anniversary this year. During a recent visit to Shanghai, Hamburg's mayor led a delegation to celebrate the milestone and further deepen cooperation in green shipping, smart ports, technological innovation, and urban resilience.