Art performance held in Cambodia to greet forthcoming Chinese New Year

The Chinese Embassy to Cambodia on Saturday evening organized an art performance to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year, or Spring Festival, which falls on Jan. 31. The event, held at the complex of the embassy in the capital Phnom Penh, was attended by some 300 Chinese business people and expatriates in Cambodia. Artists from the Confucius Institute at the Royal Academy of Cambodia and the Duan Xua Chinese School entertained the audience with a series of Chinese traditional dances, songs and martial arts. Each of the shows received hearty rounds of applause from the spectators. Addressing the ceremony, Chinese Ambassador to Cambodia Bu Jianguo said the Lunar New Year is the most important festival in China. She highlighted the excellent relations and cooperation between Cambodia and China, particularly in politics, economics, trade, investment, tourism and culture. The ambassador said last year was the 55th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties between the two countries and the China-Cambodia Year of Friendship, and the two countries organized a lot of activities to mark the occasions. "Looking to the future, I have confidence that the relationship between China and Cambodia will move closer because the leaders of the two countries have made their strong efforts and commitments to maintaining and further enhancing it," she said. The Chinese New Year is not a public holiday in Cambodia, but it is widely celebrated in this Southeast Asian nation since over 700,000 Chinese-blooded descendants are living in the country, according to the figures of the Chinese Association in Cambodia.