Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi, the Vatican's president of the Pontifical Council for Culture, will attend the Beijing World Horticultural Expo on the invitation of the organizing committee, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Lu Kang said at a press conference on Wednesday.

A bird-eye view of a venue at the Beijing World Horticultural Expo on April 16. (Photo: People's Daily online)

Ravasi is the general representative of the Vatican to the Beijing Expo, Lu said.

China and the Vatican have maintained contacts and negotiations since the signing of the provisional agreement on the appointment of bishops in September in Beijing last year, and the two sides are actively working to improve relations, Lu noted.

The Beijing Expo, which will be held from April 29 to October 7, is the world's top horticultural expo, and about 110 countries and organizations have confirmed participation.

"We hope to promote green development together with all the participants through this expo," Lu said.

(Compiled by Huang Jingjing)