BRUSSELS, Dec. 11 -- China is the first non-European country to confirm its presence in the festival "Mons European Capital of Culture 2015" in Belgium.

A memorandum was signed Wednesday in Brussels by Yang Zhijin, Chinese Vice Minister of Culture, and Fadila Laanan, Minister of Culture and Audiovisual of the Federation Wallonia-Brussels.

According to the memorandum on bilateral cooperation in the framework of Mons 2015, Chinese art groups will be encouraged to take part in the festivities of the Belgian city.

Meanwhile, China is ready to welcome artists from Wallonia-Brussels for the festival "Quanzhou East Asian Capital of Culture".

Quanzhou city, located in southeast China, was one of the first seaports for trade between China and the Arab world and Europe from the 14th century to the 18th century.

Mons, which is close to the French border, was elected in 2010 European Capital of Culture for 2015. It is the fourth Belgian city to be so honored, after Antwerp, Brussels and Brugge.

With a budget of 75 million euros (about 103 million U.S. dollars), Mons provides some 100 cultural projects for the festival.

The initiative of the European Union (EU) on the European Capital of Culture dates back to 1985, in order to promote cultural diversity, exchange and understanding among EU member states.