RIYADH: Dr. Abdulaziz Khoja, Minister of Culture and Information, inaugurated a Chinese Cultural event at the King Fahd Cultural Center (KFCC) in Riyadh, Saturday night. Eight Chinese musicians and 24 artists are participating in the three-day event which has been organized by the Ministry of Culture and Information in close cooperation with the Chinese Ministry of Culture represented by the Chinese Embassy in Riyadh. The celebration marks the 20th anniversary of Saudi-Chinese diplomatic relations, said Nasir Bin Zuman, Head of the International Relations and Cultural Activities Department, Ministry of Culture and Information. During the opening ceremony, a Chinese singer enthralled the audience with his composition of an Arabic song, and musicians performed traditional Chinese music. “Chinese artists are displaying artwork in a two-day art exhibition that runs as part of the cultural event,” Zuman said. The artwork, which includes silk and sand paintings and embroidery work, is being displayed in the KFCC lobby. The event, he added, is aimed at educating people about the century's old Chinese culture. Among those present at the opening ceremony were Dr. Abdulaziz S. Salamah, Deputy Minister of Culture and Information for Foreign Information, Chinese Ambassador Yang Honglin and a number of Saudi officials and businessmen. Dr. Khoja in a brief statement underscored the growing relations between Saudi Arabia and China. He said Saudi Arabia already has strong ties with China which were further bolstered following the exchange of visits by King Abdullah to China and Chinese President Hu Jintao to Saudi Arabia. “There is plenty of Eastern Islamic culture in China,” he noted. “China is a country with an extremely deep-rooted history of culture and civilization and the development that will be witnessed in this century in China will be great and tangible,” he said. The Kingdom is the largest supplier of energy to China. The bilateral trade volume between the two countries reached $40 billion in 2009.
