China willing to work with Brazil to promote comprehensive strategic partnership: Chinese FM

BEIJING -- Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said Saturday that China is willing to work with Brazil to promote their comprehensive strategic partnership to continue to make new progress.

Wang made the remarks in a phone conversation with Carlos Alberto Franco Franca, Brazil's new foreign minister.

Congratulating Franca on his appointment as foreign minister, Wang said as large developing countries, representatives of emerging economies and BRICS partners, China and Brazil are important forces driving forward the world's multipolarization and share extensive and close common interests.

China, Wang said, has always viewed and developed China-Brazil relations from a strategic and long-term perspective, placing Brazil in one of the priority directions for its foreign relations.

After the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, China and Brazil have fought against the pandemic with solidarity, and overcome the difficulties together. Despite the adverse trend, their pragmatic cooperation has grown, with smooth progress in a number of major projects, which fully reflects the strong resilience of the two countries' cooperation, Wang said.

Noting the virus is the common enemy of humankind, Wang said at present, the pandemic in Brazil and other Latin American countries is still very severe.

China sympathizes with Brazil and firmly supports the Brazilian government's efforts to contain the pandemic and restore its economy, Wang said, adding that China, within its capacity, is willing to continue vaccine cooperation with Brazil to meet its pressing need.

He said the economies of China and Brazil have obvious complementary advantages and great growth potential, and cooperation is in the fundamental interests of the two countries and peoples.

The two sides should promote the steady growth of bilateral trade and actively expand cooperation in 5G, digital economy, artificial intelligence and other fields. It is believed that Brazil will provide a fair and open business environment for Chinese companies operating in the country, Wang said.

Stressing both China and Brazil pursue independent foreign policies and respect each other's sovereignty and territorial integrity, Wang called on the two countries to continue to understand and support each other on issues concerning their respective core interests.

Targeting no third party, China-Latin America cooperation focuses on common development and pragmatic cooperation, which meets the needs of both sides, Wang said, hoping that Brazil will play an important and active role in this regard.

For his part, Franca, who thanked Wang for his congratulation, noted that Brazil-China relations are of great strategic significance and the two countries have conducted sound and healthy cooperation in various fields.

The Brazilian foreign minister said he believes the phone conversation will inject impetus into bilateral cooperation.

Brazil hopes to further develop harmonious relations with China and carry out long-term cooperation, Franca said, and he suggested that the two countries make full use of and improve the existing communication channels and bilateral cooperation mechanisms, strengthen their strategic dialogue and keep deepening their relations.

Thanking China for its selfless help to Brazil since the outbreak of the pandemic, Franca said China is an important producer of pharmaceutical raw materials in the world.

Noting Brazil is in urgent need of vaccines and medical supplies in the fight against the pandemic, Franca said his country hopes for continuous strong support from China.

Scientific and technological cooperation is of great significance to the two countries, and Brazil is willing to strengthen cooperation with China in such fields as digital economy and 5G, and maintain close communication with China on promoting China-Latin America cooperation, Franca added.