Harbin, capital city of Heilongjiang province, was awarded with the 2018 Culture City of East Asia title, according to a national Ministry of Culture announcement on Aug 7.

Sanya and Xi'an were also honored and awarded with the Supporting City of the 2018 Culture City of East Asia title.

The awarding ceremony is set to take place at the 9th Korea-China-Japan Culture Ministers Meeting later this month.

Luo Shugang, Culture Minister of China, encouraged the city elected to fulfill its campaign promises and enhance culture development through communication and cooperation.

Jointly established by China, Japan and South Korea in 2014, the East Asian City of Culture campaign is an important cultural brand in the region.

The campaign aims to promote regional cultural diversity and increase mutual understandings among the three countries. Every year, the campaign selects one city from each of the participating countries to be the Culture City of East Asia.

With an expanded international fame, these cities will act as models for cultural relic preservation and proper urban construction, which in return will benefit the region and its people.