Finland's Kouvola presents mascot artwork to Xi'an

An unveiling ceremony for a bear sculpture from Kouvola, a city in eastern Finland, was held at the Beikezhan Station of Xi'an Metro Line 4 in Xi'an, capital of Northwest China's Shaanxi province, on June 3.

Kouvola is an important railway hub and the western terminal of the Trans-Siberian Railway, which travels between Europe and Asia.

On May 10, 2018, Kouvola and Xi'an signed a letter of intent to develop sister-city relations. In November 2019, Xi'an presented a replica of the terracotta warriors and horses to Kouvola. This bear sculpture is a return gift from Kouvola to Xi'an.

Xi'an attaches strong importance to its relationship with Kouvola, and has managed to carriy out cooperation such as the smooth operation of the China-Europe Chang'an freight train, technical cooperation between railway schools, and environmental protection projects.

The bear sculpture was transported by the Chang-Europe freight train to Xi'an, carrying with it the blessings of Kouvola and the hope for a bright future for the two cities.

The head of the Public Relations Department of Kouvola said in an email that "Although Kouvola has not formally signed a sister-city agreement with Xi'an, it is happy to send its mascot to the city in advance."

"For many years, trade has been an important driving force behind promoting bilateral relations. I hope that after the COVID-19 epidemic, Finland can quickly recover its economy, and the two countries can resume transportation. Kouvola and Xi'an' will see even stronger cooperation in logistics," said Jarno Syrjala, Ambassador of the Republic of Finland to China, at the unveiling ceremony.

Xi'an has established sister-city relations with 37 cities and signed letters of intent to develop sister-city relations with 64 cities.