WORKING TOGETHER: Former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt (left) and Guan Chengyuan, translator of Verhofstadt's book The Financial Crisis: How Europe Can Save the World, appear at a press conference on January 27 at the Belgian Embassy in Beijing (CHEN RAN)

The Chinese edition of The Financial Crisis: How Europe Can Save the World, by former Belgian Prime Minister Guy Verhofstadt, was recently published by Beijing-based New Star Press.

The book explains the cause and impact of the global financial crisis, and also gives advice and possible solutions to address it.

The book's suggestions include cleaning up the banking sector, establishing a new financial supervisory system, having one European investment plan instead of various recovery efforts by its 27 member states, and launching a possible euro bond market.

"Europe has no other option in the new world order than to go in a more federal direction, in a more united way of thinking and doing," Verhofstadt said at a press conference on January 27 at the Belgian Embassy in Beijing, adding that the outcome of the Copenhagen Climate Change Summit, which was held after the book's publication, was an example of "a lack of unity on the European side."

In May 2009, the Chinese edition of Verhofstadt's The United States of Europe was launched by World Affairs Press.

Guan Chengyuan, who translated the two books, told Beijing Review that he believes the author's perspective will provide fresh ideas for Chinese readers to think about international relations.

"The multipolar trend that the author advocates in this book promotes fairer and more democratic international relations in the wake of the global financial crisis, which is very positive," said Guan, former Chinese ambassador to Belgium and the EU. "It took time to translate his words from French into Chinese, since the author is a senior politician who has a unique way of thinking and writing style."

WORTH READING: Huang Youyi, deputy president of China International Publishing Group (CIPG), shows the Chinese edition of The Financial Crisis: How Europe Can Save the World by Guy Verhofstadt, former Belgium Prime Minister, on January 27 at Belgium Embassy (CHEN RAN)

Huang Youyi, Deputy President of China International Publishing Group (CIPG), the parent company of New Star Press, said the translated work makes Europe accessible to Chinese readers.

"China has never been so close to Europe. What happens in Europe today may have a great impact on China tomorrow. So we have to learn more about Europe," said Huang, who is also Vice President and Secretary General of the Translators Association of China.

Huang said that each year China produces about 20,000 titles, more than half of which are translated works from foreign publishing houses. Unfortunately, most of them are on technical topics written by scholars or academics. Only a few are produced by people with political vision.

"We have to see Europe through the eyes of leading European political figures and we should do more on this, not only for CIPG," he said. "The entire publishing industry in China will benefit from it."