President Xi Jinping meets with foreign ministers from Brazil, Russia, India and South Africa, the other BRICS countries, in Beijing. [WU ZHIYI/CHINA DAILY]
'Let your voices be heard', president tells ministers from emerging nations
The BRICS countries should push forward with international order to develop in a more fair and reasonable direction, President Xi Jinping said on Monday, while also calling for joint efforts to create a new golden decade for the BRICS bloc.
The BRICS members－Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa－each face similar tasks of maintaining stability of development, Xi said while meeting with the emerging nations' foreign ministers in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.
"Facing the current chaotic and complicated international situation, the BRICS countries should let your voices be heard," Xi told the ministers.
China is the rotating chair country of the BRICS group this year. The BRICS summit will be held in the coastal city of Xiamen, Fujian province, on Sept 3 to 5.
Xi called on the BRICS members to carry out the spirit of win-win cooperation, continue to focus on development and firmly adhere to the multilateralism principle and basic norms for international relations.
"The BRICS cooperation mechanism has existed for 10 years, and I don't think the color of the BRICS has faded. We will have the new golden decade, and we should have such expectations and confidence," he said.
Cooperation among BRICS nations is an innovative practice that has surpassed the outdated mentality of political and military allies, and built the partnership with mutual trust and benefits, Xi said.
The ministers expressed gratitude toward China's work as rotating leader of BRICS. They agreed that BRICS members should enhance coordination and cooperation to jointly face various global challenges.
The BRICS mechanism should serve as an engine of cooperation among emerging countries and developing nations, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said at a news conference after the meeting of the five foreign ministers.
"The BRICS mechanism does belong not only to the five nations, but also to all emerging market countries and developing nations," Wang said.
According to a joint statement issued after the meeting, BRICS countries expect to hold a dialogue meeting between emerging market countries and developing ones during the BRICS summit in September.
In the statement, the ministers urged all countries to implement the Paris Agreement under the principles of the United Nations framework Convention on Climate Change.
"There is one climate, and, for future generations, we must employ every effort at our disposal to reverse the effects of climate change," South African Foreign Minister Maite Nkoana-Mashabane said at the news conference.
The five countries also deplored continued terrorist attacks, including in some BRICS countries.
The ministers reaffirmed the need for a comprehensive reform of the UN, including its Security Council, to make it more representative, effective and efficient, and to increase the representation of developing countries.
They committed to strengthening cooperation among BRICS within the UN and other multilateral institutions through regular meetings among their permanent representatives in New York, Geneva and Vienna.
Ruan Zongze, executive vice-president of the China Institute of International Studies, said BRICS cooperation has the vitality and potential to promote global economic growth and has contributed more than half the world's GDP.
Zhou Jin contributed to this story.
