Host of Asia-Europe summit in close cooperation with China

BRUSSELS - Chinese Premier Li Keqiang is attending the 12th Asia-Europe Meeting Summit in Brussels this week while on a working trip to Belgium.

Diplomatic relations were established between China and Belgium in 1971.

In the spring of 2014, President Xi Jinping made a historic state visit to the country, elevating bilateral relations to new heights.

Today, frequent political communications, close trade cooperation and booming people-to-people and cultural exchanges are adding fresh impetus to China-Belgium relationships.

Belgian comic franchises such as The Smurfs and The Adventures of Tintin are now very popular in China.

Likewise, China's giant pandas have become an important emblem of friendship, with a baby panda named Tianbao being born in Belgium in June 2016.

The Brussels China Cultural Center, which was launched in 2015, has hosted nearly 300 events and established key intercultural forums and avenues of dialogue through initiatives such as media breakfast meetings, cultural experience days and Chinese movie nights.

Today, the center has more than 2,700 registered members and has become one of the main gateways for cultural exchanges between China and Europe.

Given that China's image can sometimes be misunderstood in the West, the cultural center is playing a vital role in promoting Chinese culture around the European Union, benefitting from its strategic location in proximity to major EU institutions.

Overseas Chinese living in Belgium are also an integral force in strengthening cultural exchanges between the two countries.

Since 2016, the Chinese embassy has cooperated with local Chinese communities to hold Lunar New Year parades in Brussels, Dinant and Ghent, attracting tens of thousands of attendees.

Also, a growing number of Belgian students are now heading to China to pursue higher education, providing a platform for members of the younger generation from both countries to interact and create a solid foundation for future bilateral relations.

Belgium boasts many of Europe's top universities and has unique cutting-edge technologies in the fields of microelectronics, biomedicine, energy conservation, environmental protection and modern agriculture. Thousands of Chinese students come to the country for education or exchanges each year.

Chinese language education is also on the rise in Belgium. In addition to Chinese studies and translation programs on offer at several universities across the country, there are now six Confucius Institutes that have recently opened their doors.

In recent years, hundreds of Belgian high school students have participated in short-term study exchanges at summer camps in China. They learned the Chinese language and gained insights into Chinese culture, which helps promote exchanges and friendships between the two countries 'students and schools.

In November 2017, the Chinese embassy in Belgium handed out the China-Belgium Friendship Award to six of its representatives for their outstanding role in promoting Chinese culture and helping enhance the Belgian people's understanding of China.

For a long time, Belgium has been at the vanguard of cultural exchanges between China and Europe.

In April 2016, the Europe-China "One Belt One Road" Culture & Tourism Development Committee was officially launched in Brussels.

The committee promised to place a greater emphasis on culture and tourism in the framework of the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, and promote EU-China cooperation by acting as the "European pillar" of the plan.

Xinhua

(China Daily 10/19/2018 page15)