Central Asia’s First China Book Centre Opens in Uzbekistan

China and Uzbekistan are friendly neighbors with a shared future. The two countries have set a model for a new type of international relations exemplified by high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, full cooperation within multilateral frameworks such as the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO), and joint efforts to implement the Global Development Initiative, the Global Security Initiative, and the Global Civilization Initiative. Prior to the 24th Meeting of the Council of Heads of State of the SCO, on June 27, China International Communications Group (CICG) organized the inaugural ceremony for the China Book Centre and the “I Read China” cultural salon at the “Silk Road” International University of Tourism and Cultural Heritage in Samarkand, Uzbekistan. The event was part of efforts to deepen people-to-people and cultural exchanges between China and Uzbekistan.

CICG Vice President Yu Yunquan noted in his remarks at the inaugural ceremony that China and Uzbekistan have achieved common development through high-quality Belt and Road cooperation. The China Book Centre project aims to actively promote cross-border friendship and cultural and academic exchanges and enhance overseas readers’ understanding of contemporary China.

Dilmurod Nasimov, Vice President of the “Silk Road” International University of Tourism and Cultural Heritage predicted that the China Book Centre would help local readers better understand China and build a bridge between people of the two countries.

The China Book Centre was launched by CICG in 2015 under the guidance of China’s State Council Information Office with an aim to foster global cultural communication. To date, 14 China Book Centres have been opened in 14 countries. As a window to Chinese culture, the centres have contributed greatly to promoting cultural exchange and cooperation between China and other countries and enhancing friendship. The China Book Centre in Uzbekistan, built by the CICG Centre for Europe and Asia (China Pictorial Publications), houses over 1000 books donated from CICG, covering genres such as politics, economics, philosophy, art, traditional Chinese medicine, and children’s books, which have received acclaim from local teachers and students.