Taiji (Tai Chi) practitioners perform in Mdina, Malta, on April 30, 2022. Taiji (Tai Chi) practitioners in Malta marked World Taiji Day on Saturday with the first-ever relay flash mob at Malta's most iconic sites. (Photo by Jonathan Borg/Xinhua)

The first "Window of Chinese Books" program in Europe was launched on Tuesday, with an online book donation ceremony involving China's Jinling Library and Malta Libraries.

The two libraries also signed the first memorandum of understanding (MoU) in the field of public libraries between China and Malta.

The online event was held at the Central Public Library in Floriana, Malta, the most well-stocked of 57 libraries around the country.

More than 200 books were donated by the Jinling Library in Nanjing, capital of East China's Jiangsu Province. 

They cover fields such as ancient Chinese literature and art, history, geography, and contemporary Chinese politics, economy, culture, tourism and food.

Maltese Minister for National Heritage, the Arts and Local Government Owen Bonnici, and Chinese Ambassador to Malta Yu Dunhai welcomed the collaboration. 

They also expressed hope that the donated books will open a new window for understanding Chinese culture, history and social development for the Maltese people.

Books are a crucial conduit for the cultural exchange between the two countries, said Xia Jun, deputy director of the Nanjing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism, at the ceremony.

Malta and China have developed vibrant cultural relations, said Sharon Scicluna, deputy director of the Maltese Ministry for Foreign and European Affairs and Trade, adding that the opportunities arising from the signing of the MoU will further enhance the mutual cooperation.

Malta Libraries has been collaborating with the China Cultural Centre since 2018, when a Chinese collection was established at the Central Public Library.

The books, which were donated on Tuesday, not only provide a mini encyclopedia of Chinese culture and tourism, but are also a precious gift of friendship from the people of Nanjing to the Maltese people, said Yuan Yuan, director of the China Cultural Centre in Malta.

The Jinling Library has always focused on using books as a bridge for global citizens to understand Chinese culture, said the library's director Jiao Xiang.

Tuesday's book donation event was co-hosted by the Nanjing Municipal Bureau of Culture and Tourism as well as the China Cultural Centre in Malta.

The Jinling Library, founded in 1927, established its first "Window of Chinese Books" overseas in Nigeria in 2013. To date, there are 11 programs around the world.

Xinhua