On August 7, the Embassy of the People's Republic of China in Malta held a flower-laying ceremony to commemorate the 110th anniversary of the birth of former Maltese Prime Minister Dom Mintoff. Ambassador Zhang Zuo laid flowers at Prime Minister Mintoff's memorial statue and delivered a speech. Members of Prime Minister Mintoff's family, all Embassy staff, and representatives of Chinese-funded enterprises in Malta attended the ceremony.

Ambassador Zhang noted that Prime Minister Mintoff resolutely promoted the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Malta and became the first Maltese leader to visit China, making him a pioneer of the enduring call to "Go to China", whose vision remains highly relevant today. He said that the profound friendship between China and Malta is rooted in the strategic foresight that transcended the circumstances of its time, forged through mutual respect, trust and shared success, carried forward by the openness and inclusiveness fostered through ever-closer people-to-people ties, and sustained by solidarity and cooperation in pursuit of a brighter future. Ambassador Zhang also introduced the guiding principles of General Secretary Xi Jinping's important speech delivered at the meeting celebrating the 105th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of China. He stressed that China stands ready to work with Malta to pursue high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, expand mutually beneficial cooperation across various fields, and continue working together to build a community with a shared future for mankind.

Following the ceremony, Ambassador Zhang extended warm regards to Prime Minister Mintoff's 95-year-old brother and had friendly exchanges with local residents attending the event.