Cultural year launches in Greece

Event will highlight links between two ancient civilizations

Cultural links between two of the world's most ancient civilizations have been reinforced with the launching of the China-Greece Cultural Exchanges and Cultural Industry Cooperation Year, attended by visiting senior Chinese officials and Greek dignitaries in Athens on April 27.

Those who attended the grand opening ceremony at Athens' Byzantine and Christian Museum included Liu Qibao, a member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, Greek Deputy Prime Minister Yannis Dragasakis and Greek Culture Minister Lydia Koniordou.

Before the opening ceremony, Liu met with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and Kyriakos Mitsotakis, president of the New Democracy party.

"Although China and Greece are remote in physical distance, the two great civilizations do share a lot in common," Koniordou says. "Through cultural links, Chinese and Greek people can be more closely connected, and this is a pivotal part of overall China-Greece strategic cooperation."

Early cultural and economic contacts between ancient Chinese and Greek civilizations can be traced back to as far as China's Western and Eastern Han dynasties (206 BC-AD 220), according to archaeological findings. The cooperation year is seen as an extension of such contact, deepening mutual understanding and trust. The year will start with cooperation between the Chinese and Greek movie and book industries. Moviegoers now can expect more joint productions in the coming years, and keen readers will see literary classics translated into their respective languages.

Liu and Dragasakis witnessed the signing of two key documents between China's State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television and Greece's Ministry of Culture and Sports for movie and book co-production. At least 50 Chinese and Greek classic works will be translated and published in the next five years.

Yu Qun, assistant to China's minister of culture, says both China and Greece have made tremendous intellectual contributions to human civilization. "We should take this opportunity in the year of exchange to intensify the relationship between the two peoples."

Zou Xiaoli, Chinese ambassador to Greece, says cultural exchanges are an integral part of Sino-Greek ties and also play an important role in the China-Europe relationship.

Another major high-profile exchange event is an exhibition at the Byzantine and Christian Museum highlighting the Beijing 2022 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games.

Zhang Fuhai, director of the China Foreign Language Publishing Administration, says he hopes visitors to the exhibition will see and feel China and Beijing's determination to have a successful Winter Olympics.

"We believe that the Olympic ideals, which originated in ancient Greece, will shine brightly once again in Beijing," he says.

Visitors can experience a tour of the venues with the help of virtual reality equipment at the exhibition.

A parallel three-week exhibition, dedicated to the rich cultural heritage of Hangzhou, Zhejiang province, has also started.

leixiaoxun@chinadaily.com.cn