Thanks to the 2013 Chinese Training Program for EU Employees, some 30 officials got the opportunity to know more about China.

Launched by the Hanban (Confucius Institute Headquarters) and organized by Beijing Foreign Studies University, the program, which lasts from July 20-28, is the first such cultural exchange platform in China designed for European Union employees, said Jing Wei, deputy director-general of Hanban.

"As the relationship between China and the EU becomes closer, an increasing number of EU employees have shown their interest in China, and they would like to come to see China themselves," she said.