Professor Ante Simonic, the former Deputy Prime Minister of the Republic of Croatia, the current Chairman of the Sino-Croatia Senior Advisory Committee, Chairman of the Sino-Croatia Friendship Association, and her wife, Miss Zhao Lita, Secretary-General of the Sino-Croatia Friendship Association, paid a visit to Soochow University. President Xiong Sidong met with Professor Simonic and his delegation. Tao Yuguang, Director of Friendship Association of the Foreign Affairs Office of Suzhou Municipal Government, and Zhang Qiao, Director of the office of International Cooperation and Exchange of Soochow University and other representatives attended the meeting.

President Xiong Sidong welcomed Professor Simonic and his delegation, and introduced to the visitors the history and status quo of Soochow University. He said that Soochow University, in recent years, has vigorously promoted its internationalization strategy and has established cooperation with many well-known universities and institutes around the world. Professor Simonic also expressed his wish to establish a partnership with universities and research institutes in Croatia. After learning that Professor Simonic has been committed to promoting traditional Chinese medicine in Croatia and even in Europe, President Xiong Sidong indicated that Socchow University also has a good foundation and platform for Chinese medicine research. He suggested that Soochow University may conduct joint researches with Croatian universities and research institutions in the field of Chinese medicine.

Professor Simonic said that the development of Soochow University left him a very deep impression and he hoped that this visit would be an opportunity to promote cooperation between Soochow University and Croatian universities. As a tenured Professor at Rijeka School of Medicine, he has always been committed to bringing traditional Chinese medicine to Europe and  relieving more patients’ pain by a combination of traditional Chinese and Western medicine. He pointed out that China and Croatia have broad prospects for cooperation in many fields like education, scientific research, medical care and so forth. He also believed that this meeting is just a beginning and hoped that substantial cooperation between Soochow University and Croatian universities will be conducted in the foreseeable future.

After the meeting, Professor Simonic delivered a presentation entitled "Power of Knowledge" to the teachers and students of Soochow University and interacted with the audiences present.