Global leaders join Chinese New Year celebration

(ECNS) -- Global leaders from at least 26 countries have extended their best wishes to celebrate China's Lunar New Year, with nearly 60 percent received via congratulatory messages and telegrams, The Mirror reported on Tuesday.

Celebrations for the Year of the Goat were held in 119 countries and regions across the world, an increase of nearly 50 percent compared to data from three years ago.

Outside of Asia, London saw the largest celebration, with a 500,000-strong audience attending the event, followed by Australia and North America, with more than 100,000 people involved respectively.

Elsewhere in the world, from West Africa to Southeast Asia, people were also welcoming Chinese New Year. Celebrations in Mali and Haiti included the cooking of dumplings and the weaving of Chinese knots. In Chicago, big red lanterns hung over John Hancock Tower, the city's 300-meter-high landmark.

The diversity of China's aid projects, peacekeeping missions and strengthened cultural exchanges might be the main reasons for the worldwide celebration, Xinhua news agency stated.

Chinese New Year has become a brilliant symbol of world culture and provides a precious occasion for those outside China to experience its unique charm, it was added.