The Chinese Cultural Center in Bucharest was inaugurated on Friday in the run-up to the 75th anniversary of diplomatic relations between China and Romania and 20th anniversary of their comprehensive friendly and cooperative partnership.
The center, spanning an area of about 3,000 square meters, is located in the downtown of Bucharest, and features an art gallery, a library, lecture halls and a multi-functional hall.
Chinese Ambassador to Romania Han Chunlin and Traian Laurentiu Hristea, Romania's secretary of state for global affairs and diplomatic strategies, attended the center's inauguration.
Han said that the center marks a memorable moment in China-Romania relations and a new chapter in cultural exchanges, serving as a platform for cultural interaction and cooperation to strengthen their friendship and advance their relationship.
Hristea praised the vitality and diversity of Chinese culture, highlighting the longstanding cultural ties between the two nations and expressing hopes for further collaboration in culture, education, art, economy, and tourism.
Xu Ningbo, director of the new center, said the center will serve as a gateway for the Romanian people to gain a comprehensive understanding of China, fostering people-to-people exchanges between the two countries and promoting deeper and more substantial cooperation and interaction.
At the launching ceremony, the Chinese Orchestra of China National Opera and Dance Drama Theater, along with the Romanian Allegretto Children's Choir, jointly staged a music performance themed with Chinese and Western musical instrument dialogue.
The center also hosted an art exhibition on the same day, showcasing 75 pieces of Chinese contemporary painting and works of Romanian artist Eugen Popa, highlighting the significance of cultural exchanges and mutual learning between the two countries in fostering cultural understanding.
China and Romania established diplomatic relations on Oct. 5, 1949.
China Cultural Center inaugurated in Bucharest
As the global AI infrastructure build-out fuels explosive demand for computing power, optical communications companies in east China's Suzhou City are riding the wave into an unprecedented boom that spans every link of the industrial chain.
At a major chip manufacturer in Suzhou New District, an emerging high tech hub, machinery operates nonstop around the clock. With market demand climbing steadily, the company is running at full throttle to ensure timely delivery of optical communication chips.
"Downstream demand is growing at an extraordinary pace, so we're allocating more capacity to optical chips. This year, we've bolstered our research and development and production teams and are actively scaling up our facilities," said Li Shunfeng, deputy director of Suzhou Changguang Huaxin Semiconductor Laser Innovation Research Institute.
While ensuring robust shipments of mature chips, the company is also racing to upgrade its frontier technologies. Over the past year, multiple high speed optical communication chips tailored for supercomputing centers have completed process verification and are now moving into mass production and delivery, filling the supply gap for homegrown high-end optical chips.
"In the past year, we've started delivering several high-end products. Chips for 800G and even 1.6T optical modules are also gaining progress from R and D to the validation stage, and they're set to play a much bigger role in high density interconnects in the future," said Li.
The surge in orders for upstream chipmakers is creating ripple opportunities throughout the supply chain. Not far away, another manufacturer produces AI-powered inspection systems for precision optical components. Inside the factory, a fresh batch of newly assembled vision measuring machines was being rapidly packed and readied for delivery.
"Our monthly shipments are around 300 units. In the optical communications sector, demand has more than doubled," said Xu Xin, technical director of Suzhou TZTEK Technology Co., Ltd.
Optical fiber serves as the critical infrastructure linking computing power to data. In Wujiang District, a company has seen fiber optic product sales rise more than 35 percent year-on-year since January. Soaring demand for next-gen fiber products from data centers has kept their products in short supply.
"We're nearly fully booked with orders every month. We're prioritizing major clients while mapping out capacity well into the future, with production already planned through the first quarter of 2027," said Sun Wei, R and D director of Jiangsu Hengtong Optical Fiber Technology Co., Ltd.
Jiangsu's optical communications sector gains momentum amid AI boom
