Xiplomacy: Xi stays committed to promoting BRICS cooperation

BEIJING -- Chinese President Xi Jinping will host the 14th BRICS Summit and the High-level Dialogue on Global Development, and attend the opening ceremony of the BRICS Business Forum in virtual format later this week.

The BRICS mechanism features five major emerging economies, namely Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa. Since it was forged more than a decade ago, the member countries have achieved fruitful results in cooperation in such areas as economy, trade, politics, security, technological innovation, as well as cultural and people-to-people exchanges.

Over the years, President Xi has contributed his insights to the mechanism, promoting the development of the global platform for multilateral cooperation. The following are some highlights of his remarks in this regard.

ON POLITICAL AND SECURITY COOPERATION

"We are in a great era of development, transformation and adjustment. Although conflict and poverty are yet to be eliminated globally, the trend toward peace and development has grown ever stronger," Xi said at the opening ceremony of the BRICS Business Forum on Sept. 3, 2017.

"Our world today is becoming increasingly multipolar; the economy has become globalized; there is growing cultural diversity; and the society has become digitized. The law of the jungle where the strong prey on the weak and the zero-sum game are rejected, and peace, development and win-win cooperation have become the shared aspiration of all peoples," he said.

ON WORLD ECONOMY

"We should promote the building of an open global economy, advance trade and investment liberalization and facilitation, jointly build new global value chains, and rebalance economic globalization," Xi said at the opening ceremony of the BRICS Business Forum in 2017, noting: "Doing so will bring benefits to people across the world."

"We five countries should open more to each other, expand converging interests in this process, take an inclusive approach and share opportunities, so as to create even brighter prospects for growing the economies of the five countries," Xi added.

At the 12th BRICS Summit on Nov. 17, 2020, Xi said: "COVID-19 is a challenge we have to face head-on. We need to call on the international community to place the implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development at the heart of international development cooperation. Poverty eradication must be made a primary goal, and more resources must be channeled to poverty reduction, education, health and infrastructure development."

"We need to support the UN's coordinating role and foster global development partnerships that are more equal and balanced, so that the fruits of development will spread to more developing countries and the needs of underprivileged groups will be better addressed," he also stressed.

ON PEOPLE-TO-PEOPLE EXCHANGES

"The successful cooperation of the BRICS countries proves that different social systems can accommodate each other, that different development models can work with each other and that different values can draw on the strength of each other. We should stay open and inclusive so as to learn from each other and make progress together through seeking common ground while putting aside differences," Xi said at the Seventh BRICS Summit on July 9, 2015.

"We the BRICS countries boast great civilizations. When it comes to cultural and people-to-people exchanges, there is a lot we can do together," the president said at the plenary session of the BRICS Johannesburg Summit on July 26, 2018.

"We should aim at greater people-to-people connectivity and more popular support for BRICS cooperation through extensive exchanges in cultural, educational, health, sports, tourism and other areas," he added.

At the plenary session of the BRICS Brasilia Summit on Nov. 14, 2019, Xi noted: "We need to sustain and build up this momentum to take our people-to-people exchanges to greater breadth and depth. On that basis, we can leverage 'BRICS Plus' cooperation as a platform to increase dialogue with other countries and civilizations and win BRICS more friends and partners."