New York (People’s Daily) - Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi hosted the Seventh Dialogue of Foreign Ministers of China and the Quartet of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) at the UN headquarters in New York. 

Photo by Ma Delin, provided to People's Daily

The Latin American Communist Party’s rotating presidency, Bolivian Foreign Minister Diego Pary; the former rotating presidency, the representative of El Salvador’s Foreign Minister Alexandra Hill; the designate rotating presidency, Mexican Foreign Minister Marcelo Ebrard; and the rotating presidency of Caribbean Community, Saint Lucia’s Minister for External Affairs Sarah Flood Beaubrun, as well as Dominican Foreign Minister Miguel Vargas, Nicaragua’s Secretary of the Presidency Paul Oquist Kelley, and other representatives of the member states from the Latin American community participated.

Given the current international situation and the fact that China, Latin American and the Caribbean (LAC) countries are all developing countries, they share a wide range of common interests in safeguarding international fairness and justice, defending free trade and encouraging multilateralism, said Wang.

Wang stated that China will join with Latin American and Caribbean countries in accommodating each other’s core interests and major concerns on the basis of equal footing, mutual benefit, and win-win results. China has no geopolitical considerations concerning Latin America and the Caribbean region and is willing to discuss and carry out trilateral, multilateral cooperation. 

Eying further cooperation in the next stage, Wang proposed four tasks with CELAC during the meeting. 

First, to jointly build the Belt and Road Initiative in high quality. Wang said China has competitive advantages in high-tech fields such as big data, artificial intelligence and 5G network. China, Latin American and Caribbean countries can prioritize the facilitation of Digital Silk Road and Cyber Silk Road cooperation under the framework of Belt and Road Initiative.

Second, to expand cooperation in emerging areas. China has accumulated rich experience in areas like targeted poverty alleviation and contamination control and is willing to share them with Latin American and Caribbean countries.

Third, to strengthen multilateral solidarity and cooperation. China supports LAC countries in holding BRICS Summit, the annual APEC Economic Leaders’ Meeting and the United Nations Climate Change Conference this year.

Fourth, to perfect the construction of the forum mechanism. China is willing to keep in close contact and cooperation with the LAC countries through multi-level meetings and dialogues. 

Foreign ministers of CELAC countries said LAC countries are ready to work with China to improve communication and collaboration, to defense multilateralism and the international order, and to promote China-LAC relations to a new level. The two sides also exchanged views on their mutual concerns about international and local issues.