ATHENS, May 11 (Xinhua) -- Dialogue between different civilizations is important for world peace, Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos has said.

"Global peace depends on the dialogue between civilizations," Pavlopoulos told Xinhua ahead of his state visit to China on May 12-16, during which he will also attend the Conference on Dialogue of Asian Civilizations (CDAC) in Beijing.

The president said that his country sees the CDAC as the best opportunity to underline how great the value of dialogue between civilizations is.

"Real civilizations do not collide. Real civilizations simply, sometimes, lose communication with each other. Bridges are cut off. We need to rebuild these bridges. We must restore this communication. That is the role of dialogue between civilizations," Pavlopoulos said.

"We live in troubled and dangerous times, so we must defend above all the human being in such times. If we do not do this through dialogue between civilizations, there is no other way to do it," he said.

"The East and the West, we have many more things that unite us than those that separate us," Pavlopoulos said.

Peace can only be consolidated through peaceful coexistence, which cannot be achieved without dialogue between civilizations, he said, adding that "civilization is the main pillar that can support" mankind.

"I think that nowadays we have not understood the importance of civilization. That is why there is this turbulence all over the world. When we realize how important civilization is, real civilization, how many common things we share through civilization ... then, we will understand that the future of mankind towards peace is a future that goes through the dialogue and understanding of civilizations," he said.

The CDAC, themed "Exchanges and Mutual Learning among Asian Civilizations and A Community with A Shared Future," will open on May 15. It is expected to gather more than 2,000 government officials and representatives of various circles from 47 Asian countries and other countries outside the region.