China Cultural Centre opens in Budapest

Director Jin Hao said the centre would open to the public on Thursday, after years of careful planning. The exhibition features the photos of Hungarian photographers of the Shanghai and Suzhou regions, he added.

Janos Csak, the outgoing minister of culture and innovation, said the centre was “another sign of Hungarian-Chinese friendship and long-term mutual respect”. Hungarian-Chinese cooperation, he added, extends beyond culture to economy, trade and finance.

The centre will have an important role in helping Hungarians to get to know Chinese culture better, similarly to the work of the Beijing Liszt Institute and Hungarian consulates in China, which are spreading knowledge of Hungarian culture, Csak said.

Csak added that his successor, Balazs Hanko, would be similarly committed to supporting relations between the two countries.

China’s Ambassador to Hungary, Gong Tao, said the centre had always had “full support” from the Hungarian government since its inception in 2020. He said the two peoples had “great respect” for each other’s history and culture, and nurtured a strong friendship.