Philadelphia values its partnership and friendship with China, mayor James Kenney said on Monday during the China-U.S. Cultural Heritage and Urban Development Forum.

"I think it's important that (U.S.) cities and states continue to forge relationship with our partners, especially China," said Kenney when addressing the one-day event held at the Pennsylvania Convention Center downtown.

The mayor said the forum is not only "a superb platform" for Chinese and American experts and scholars to share experiences and best practices regarding cultural heritage protection, but also "an excellent opportunity" to further strengthen the city's ties with China.

"We welcome you here. We value your partnership and value your friendship and we want to continue," he told the audience.

According to the mayor, Mandarin is the third most spoken language in Philadelphia, whose relationship with China has continued to grow since 1979 when the two countries established diplomatic relations.

Zhao Yumin, acting Chinese consul general in New York, said at the forum that Philadelphia was a pioneer in developing Sino-U.S. relationship, referring to the icebreaking trip of the Philadelphia Orchestra to Beijing and Shanghai in 1973.

"What's the most important heritage we need to protect? That's the cooperative spirit China and the United States have honored for 40 years," said Zhao, adding that he looked forward to seeing Philadelphia become another pioneer in promoting China-U.S. cooperation.

The meaning of Philadelphia is "the city of brotherly love" in Greek. "In fact, we need the friendship between people, and the love between people and nature, between people and cities," Song Heyi, editor-in-chief of China Cultural Media Group said.

The forum was jointly hosted by the Consulate General of the People's Republic of China in New York, the China Cultural Media Group, and the City of Philadelphia.