China-Latin America relations boosted at UN meeting

State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said China hopes to reach more consensus with Latin American and Caribbean countries during the Sixth Round of Dialogue of the Foreign Ministers of China and the Quartet of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) on Tuesday.

China has always viewed relations with Latin American and Caribbean countries from a strategic and long-term perspective and promoted China-CELAC cooperation on the basis of equality, mutual benefit and common development, said Wang Yi at the meeting at United Nations Headquarters in New York.

In the past five years, President Xi Jinping has visited Latin America three times and met with leaders of almost all countries with established diplomatic relations with China, advancing the China-Latin America comprehensive partnership of cooperation into a new stage of development.

The cooperation between China and Latin America in various fields has developed vigorously and has formed an all-round and multilevel cooperation pattern.

China’s contribution to the development of Latin America and the Caribbean is obvious to all, and the integration of China-Latin America interests is further deepened, Wang said.

Wang said that after more than three years of development, the China-CELAC Forum has become the main platform for overall cooperation between China and Latin America, which has provided strong support for the construction of shared destinies.

As next year marks the fifth anniversary of the establishment of the China-CELAC Forum, Wang said China is looking forward to taking the opportunity to work with CELAC to continue to strengthen the forum and contribute to the development of higher quality in China-CELAC relations.

In attendance on Tuesday were Carlos Castaneda, foreign minister of El Salvador, the country currently holding the CELAC pro tempore presidency; Miguel Vargas Maldonado, foreign minister of the Dominican Republic; Diego Pary, foreign minister of Bolivia; and Kamina Johnson-Smith, minister of foreign affairs and foreign trade of Jamaica.

They said that the CELAC countries are committed to promoting relations with China and deepening mutually beneficial cooperation between the two countries.

China is a comprehensive cooperative partner of the CELAC. The relationship between the two sides is based on equality, mutual benefit, openness, mutual respect and without any political considerations.

Both CELAC and China adhere to multilateralism. The two sides should increase the integration of interests and jointly address global challenges under the current international situation, which will bring greater benefits to both peoples, Wang said.

The dialogue of foreign ministers of China and the quartet of CELAC is a mechanism for the two sides to have regular consultations on regional and international issues of mutual interest.