Israeli audiences will have opportunity to savor a variety of
ancient Chinese culture in the next few months, as the first China
Cultural Festival is held starting from late May.
Zhang Xiao'an, Charge d'Affaires of the Chinese Embassy in
Israel, announced on Sunday at a press conference in Jerusalem that
the feast would open on May 25 with the renowned Wuhan Acrobatic
Troupe of China performing the acrobatic show Heroes.
Following the opening performances, a series of different
Chinese cultural events will be held throughout Israel, including
Chinese folk dance, folk music and songs, arts and crafts, photo
exhibitions, plays, and movies.
The festival, which is jointly held by the Chinese and Israeli
governments, is dedicated to mark the 15th anniversary of
diplomatic relations between the two countries, and will last for
about six months until November 2007.
More than 200 performers from all over China will be traveling
to Israel to participate in the event, and the festival will be the
greatest event in the sphere of cultural exchanges between the two
countries, said Zhang.
"The festival will open a broad vista where the richness and
profoundness of Chinese culture vividly unfolds, and it will
promote the cultural cooperation between China and Israel," she
added.
Arthur Avnon, Head of Division for Cultural and Scientific
Affairs in the Israeli Foreign Ministry also said at the conference
that Israel is happy to host Chinese artists because, "cultural
exchange is important for the two peoples."
"Besides the upcoming China Cultural Festival, Israel is also
planning to hold a lot of cultural activities in China." he
said.
According to Avnon, six Israeli dance groups are going to visit
Shanghai to participate in the international cultural festival
there. Israel is also planning a series of cultural-exchange
activities in the fields of music and literature in China.
"We are very happy that all these activities are going on, we
attach great importance to the relations between the two peoples,
not only the governments," said Avnon.
In the past 15 years, bilateral relations between China and
Israel have witnessed a rapid development and scored remarkable
achievements.
The bilateral trade volume between the two nations has increased
from US$50 million to 3.88 billion dollars over the past 15 years,
with an average annual growth rate of 40 percent.
Currently, there are more than 800 Israeli commercial companies
doing business in China, among which, more than 200 have set up
branch companies.
(Xinhua News Agency May 21, 2007)