Xi's book sets record for distribution

More than 6.2 million copies of President Xi Jinping's book Xi Jinping: The Governance of China have been distributed worldwide since its debut two years ago, said Jiang Jianguo, minister of the State Council Information Office, on Monday.

Visitors browse through books at the opening ceremony of the China-Themed Book Global Exhibition in Geneva, Switzerland, on Monday. Many books on China's politics, economy, culture and history are exhibited at the event. [Photo/CHINA NEWS SERVICE]

"The book has steadily attracted worldwide attention," Jiang said at a launch ceremony for an international book exhibition with a China theme in Geneva.

Jiang said the book's distribution has set a record, surpassing all other Chinese leaders' works since the reform and opening-up in the late 1970s.

The book exhibition, which will last one month, was launched one day before the Ministry of Foreign Affairs announced Xi's visit to Switzerland from Sunday to Jan 18.

"President Xi will be discussing with his Swiss counterpart how to upgrade the relations to a new level, and the visit will be of landmark importance to the region and the world," said Jiang.

In addition to enhancing trade relations, China and Switzerland will announce measures to boost cultural exchanges, tourism and financial cooperation.

Xi will speak at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum on Jan 17 in Davos. He is scheduled to visit the International Olympic Committee in Lausanne and the headquarters of the World Health Organization in Geneva, and will speak at a high-level conference at the United Nations Office in Geneva before wrapping up his first overseas tour this year.

The book exhibition was organized as a warmup to the visit and to boost cultural exchanges between the two countries.

Xi's book was praised by Swiss scholars and journalists.

"It is very interesting that this book has been translated into French, Italian and German, which our Swiss people speak," said Catherine Fiankan-Bokonga, vice-president of the Swiss Journalist Club. "I think this book could help us understand why China could sustain stable growth for years and how it obtained its global influence."

Xi Jinping: The Governance of China contains speeches, talks, interviews, notes and letters produced between November 2012 and June 2014.

The book was published in Chinese, English, French, Russian, Arabic, Spanish, Portuguese, German and Japanese in September 2014, and now it has been distributed in more than 100 countries and regions in additional languages.