At Brics Summit, Xi Jinping urges members to shelve differences and seek common ground
The Chinese president said the five countries that make up the bloc play an important role in international affairs now more than ever.
Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday urged members of the Brics bloc – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – to end their differences by seeking common ground and address each other’s concerns through strategic talks to improve cooperation, PTI reported.
“In terms of Brics cooperation, decisions are made through consultation, not by one country,” Xi said at the opening ceremony of the Brics Summit in Xiamen. “We respect each other’s model of development, accommodate each other’s concern and work to enhance strategic communication and mutual trust.”
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is attending the summit in Xiamen. He will be in China till September 5 for the conclave. Brazilian President Michel Temer, Russian President Vladimir Putin and South African President Jacob Zuma will also attend the event.
The Chinese president emphasised that Brics was not a tool to further any particular geopolitical agenda, but was a platform for “all countries to achieve win-win cooperation”
India attaches high importance to BRICS, which has begun a 2nd decade of its partnership for progress and peace.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 2, 2017
At the BRICS Summit, looking forward to building upon the results & outcomes of the Goa Summit last year.
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 2, 2017
Economic cooperation
Xi further said that emerging markets and developing countries played a greater role in international affairs at present than earlier. He said the Brics cooperation had been “a natural choice” by the five countries and had become a bright spot in the global economy in the past decade, Xinhua reported.
The Chinese president also highlighted that Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa together accounted for 23% of the global economy in 2016 – nearly double their contribution in 2006 – and had contributed to more than half of the global economic growth.
“Economic cooperation is the foundation of the Brics mechanism,” Xi said. “Leveraging our respective strengths and converging interests, we have put in place a leaders-driven cooperation framework that covers wide-ranging areas and multiple levels.”
India-China ties
The Brics summit comes days after India and China ended their 73-day standoff in the Sikkim sector’s Doklam area. Both countries withdrew their troops from the region. Bilateral ties have been strained since the Indian military stopped men from China’s People’s Liberation Army from constructing a road in Doklam on June 26.
