A girl steps on to an attic of her home at Hongcun village in East China's Anhui province, with the Hui-style buildings visible in the background, on April 9, 2014. [Photo by Liu Hui / For China Daily]

Dai Bingguo, former state councilor, also wrote in the preface for the photo book. He said that this year is "China Russia Media Exchange Year", adding that the cooperation project between China Daily and Rossiyskaya Gazeta has "done a good deed" to further mutual understanding and friendship between the people of the two countries. "It will help our friends know China and focus on China," he said.

Alexey Volin, vice minister of the Ministry of Telecom and Mass Communications of the Russian Federation, said that the joint project was a successful experiment that "shows territorial and linguistic barriers cannot become real obstacles for people who expect to see and understand each other."

The Focus series, launched in 2003, has included breaking news events, landmark celebrations of sportsmanship and insights into places such as Taiwan and Macao.

Together with Zhu and Dai, Pavel Negoitsa, general director of Rossiyskaya Gazeta, wrote the preface for the album.