Executive Program for Cultural Exchange between

the Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the People’s Republic of China and the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Latvia

for the Years 2021-2025

The Ministry of Culture and Tourism of the People's Republic of China and the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Latvia (hereinafter referred to as the "Parties") recalling the Agreement between the Government of the People’s Republic of China and the Government of the Republic of Latvia on Cooperation in the Field of Culture signed in Hangzhou on September 22, 2017 have agreed on the following executive program for the period 2021 to 2025.

The Parties believe that the implementation of this program will contribute to the further development of friendly relations and mutual understanding between the two peoples of both countries.

Article 1

The Parties encourage and support the exchange of information and personnel in the fields of music, museums, cultural heritage protection, visual arts, theatre, literature, book publishing, intangible cultural heritage and archives.

Article 2

The Parties encourage their artists, creators and cultural professionals to invite each other to participate in theatre, arts, dance and music festivals, competitions and other international cultural and artistic activities held in their respective countries.

The Chinese Party welcomes the Latvian Party to participate in the following international arts festivals in accordance with the financial provisions of this program:

（1）"Meet Beijing" Art Festival

（2）China International Folk Art Festival

（3）Chinese Children's Drama Festival

（4）Silk Road International Arts Festival

（5）Xinjiang International Folk Dance Festival

（6）Chinese and international cultural week of China-Asia-Europe Expo

（7）China International Chorus Festival

The Latvian Party welcomes the Chinese Party to participate in the following international arts festivals and competitions in accordance with the financial provisions of this program:

（1）Riga International Textile and Fibre Art Triennial

（2）International Folklore Festival "Baltica"

（3）Andrejs Jurjans’ VII International Competition for Wind Instruments

（4）Riga Opera Festival

（5）International Contemporary Dance Festival "Laiks dejot" (Time to dance)

（6）Contemporary Crafts Festival in the Latvian Ethnographic Open – Air Museum

Article 3

During the validity period of this program, the Parties will exchange one or two art exhibitions.

The Parties support mutual exhibitions between the National Museum of China or the Palace Museum and the Latvian National Museum of Art or other State funded museums in Latvia. Exhibition organization and cost bearing shall follow the principle of reciprocity.

Article 4

Within the validity period of this program, the Parties will exchange performing art troupes with not more than 15 members.

Article 5

The  Parties  encourage  professional  cooperation, and exchange of experts in the safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage, preservation of tangible cultural heritage, as well as cooperation in prevention of illicit trafficking in cultural goods.

Article 6

The Parties encourage exchanges and cooperation in the field of cultural and creative industries.

Article 7

The Parties support cooperation in the field of libraries and archives. The Parties are encouraged to carry out cooperation in the fields of librarianship including publication exchange, joint exhibitions, document digitization and preservation and protection of historical documents. National libraries of both countries are encouraged to strengthen interlibrary exchanges and cooperation. The archives of both sides are encouraged to establish direct contacts and sign bilateral cooperation agreements on specific cooperation contents.

Article 8

Within the validity period of this program, the Parties will exchange a 5-member ministerial level delegation for mutual visits for not more than five days.

Article 9

The Parties encourage the exchange of delegations between the writers' associations of the two countries for dialogues and literary exchange.

Article 10

(1)The Parties shall explore the possibility of translating and popularizing the literary works of each other, as far as possible, encourage their publishing houses to introduce, translate and publish excellent literature and cultural works of the other country in their own languages, and provide financial support in accordance with the rules and regulations of their respective countries.

(2)The Parties shall, within the scope of their responsibilities, encourage publishing institutions of both countries to establish direct contacts. The mode of cooperation shall be decided by the relevant publishing institutions of their  respective countries.

(3)The Parties will encourage their publishing institutions to participate in international book fairs held in each other's countries. The specific conditions and terms shall be agreed upon by relevant institutions of their respective countries through working channels in advance.

Article 11

(1)The provisions of this program do not exclude the Parties from an agreement on other cultural activities to be carried out through diplomatic channels.

(2)The Parties agree that the provisions of this program will be implemented

within funds allocated in the annual budget of the Parties or with the financial support provided by relevant institutions interested in implementing specific initiatives.

Article 12

Unless a separate financial agreement is signed, the following financial terms shall apply when the Parties exchange delegations and art troupes:

(1)The Sending Party shall bear the international travel expenses, stage props and luggage transportation expenses and personal insurance fees to and from the capital of the other Party's country;

(2)The Receiving Party shall bear the expenses of meals, accommodation, local transportation, and provide performance venues and interpreting service, as well as emergency medical services if necessary;

(3)The Receiving Party shall bear the transportation and insurance expenses of the stage props in the local area, and be responsible for the publicity.

Article 13

When holding exhibitions in each other’s countries, in the absence of a separate financial agreement, the Parties shall abide by the following financial terms:

(1)The Sending Party shall bear the international travel and insurance expenses for the exhibits transported to and from the capital of the other Party's country, and provide the reception party with promotional materials and exhibits catalogue.

(2)The Receiving Party shall be responsible for the exhibition organization and publicity and the expenses rising from the exhibition installation and removal and local transportation of the exhibits, and provide the exhibition venue and ensure the security of the exhibits.

(3)The Sending Party shall bear the international travel expenses of the accompanying personnel and the delegation participating in the opening ceremony to and from the capital of the other Party's country; the Receiving Party shall cover the expenses for meals, accommodation,  local transportation of the above-mentioned personnel, provide interpreting services and emergency medical services if necessary.

(4)Other matters considering exhibition exchanges not included in this program will be discussed separately by the relevant departments of the two countries.

Article 14

This program shall come into effect from the date of signature and shall be valid until December 31, 2025.

This program is signed in Beijing on February 9, 2021 in duplicate in the Chinese,Latvian and English languages,all texts being equally authentic.

In case of any divergence in the interpretation of the text, the English version shall prevail.

For the Ministry of Culture and Tourism     For the Ministry of Culture 

of the People’s Republic of China           of the Republic of Latvia