Hosted by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS) and the 16 plus 1 Think Tank Network that was set up by China and 16 Central and Eastern European (CEE) countries in 2012, the launch ceremony of the China-Central and Eastern Europe Institute was held at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences (MTA) on April 24.

Liu Qibao, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and the Secretariat of the CPC Central Committee, who is also head of the CPC Central Committee's Publicity Department, attended the event and inaugurated the China-CEE Institute with Wang Weiguang, CASS president, director-general of the 16 plus 1 Think Tank Network and also honorary director of the institute.

Prior to the launch ceremony，Liu met with and had a brief talk with MTA President László Lovász, expressing his gratitude for the support they provided to the establishment of the China-CEE Institute. 

László Lovász and delegates, including China’s Ambassador to Hungary Duan Jielong, also attended the ceremony and delivered speeches. Huang Ping, director of the Institute of European Studies and director of the China-CEE Institute chaired the ceremony.

The first Chinese think tank to be independently registered in Europe, the China-CEE Institute embodies the idea of culture “going out” proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping. It aims to promote people-to-people exchanges, academic and policy communication between China and countries in Central and Eastern Europe. 

Think tanks and academic institutions are urgently needed to deepen studies and exchanges in terms of emerging issues, with increasingly enhanced cooperation in all fields between China and countries in Central and Eastern Europe. Established at the right moment, the China-CEE Institute marks a new step in humanities and academic exchanges, said Wang in his address to the ceremony.