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BRICS Leaders’ Informal Meeting in Hangzhou on the Sidelines of G20 Summit
Xi Jinping Attends BRICS Leaders’ Informal Meeting
On September 4, 2016, President Xi Jinping, Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, President Jacob Zuma of South Africa, President Michel Temer of Brazil and President Vladimir Putin of Russia attended the BRICS Leaders’ Informal Meeting held in Hangzhou. Leaders of the five countries exchanged in-depth views on deepening cooperation among BRICS countries and jointly dealing with current challenges.
Xi Jinping pointed out in the welcoming speech that cooperation among BRICS countries this year has maintained a sound momentum of development with further expanded fields and increasingly visible achievements. BRICS countries play a leading role in emerging markets and developing countries, and are important members of the G20 as well. We should follow the historical trend, keep up with major international situation and enhance coordination and cooperation, so as to properly build, maintain and develop the two important platforms of the BRICS and the G20, and push for greater contributions of emerging markets and developing countries to international affairs.
The meeting was chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India, rotating presidency of the BRICS.
Xi Jinping pointed out in his speech that current world economy is experiencing a transition where old growth drivers are being placed by new ones, resulting in slow and sluggish recovery. BRICS countries face frequent waves although their international environment is stable on the whole. Facing the new situation, we should stay confident and firm, and be aware of the strength and potential of BRICS countries as well as the vigor of emerging markets and developing countries represented by BRICS countries. As long as we consolidate the foundation, properly solve current problems and challenges, strengthen unity, and deepen mutual trust and cooperation, we are sure to embrace a new situation for BRICS cooperation.
Xi Jinping put forward four proposals on enhancing BRICS cooperation.
First, jointly innovate in growth patterns. By seizing the opportunity that China is promoting the formulation of a G20 blueprint on innovative growth, BRICS countries should accelerate the implementation of innovation-driven development strategies, maintain efforts in expanding overall demand, deepen structural reform, renovate and upgrade traditional comparative advantages, and enhance mid-to-long-term growth potential. All sides should earnestly carry out the BRICS Economic Partnership Strategy adopted at the Ufa Summit last year, and create a new situation for the merging of trade and investment, the flow of currency and finance, the connectivity in infrastructure, and the exchanges of personnel and culture, forging a powerful synergy with complementary advantages and strengthened interconnection.
Second, jointly improve global governance. BRICS countries should continue to strengthen communication and cooperation within the G20 framework, actively promote the governance structure reform of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank, and increase the representativeness and voice of emerging markets and developing countries. The five countries should firmly maintain the position of multilateral trade system as the main channel, jointly build an open world economy, and oppose protectionism and exclusionism in all forms to ensure equality in development rights, opportunities and rules of all countries. The BRICS should promote the BRICS New Development Bank to launch its first batch of projects as soon as possible, constantly improve its management level and financing capacity, and step up macro study on the Contingent Reserves Arrangement in order to strengthen the financial security network for BRICS countries.
Third, jointly safeguard international fairness and justice and build a peaceful and stable development environment. BRICS countries should continue to strengthen political security cooperation on the basis of respecting each other’s concerns and accommodating each other’s interests. The BRICS should safeguard the purpose and principles of the UN Charter, maintain the fundamental principles of international relations, push forward the construction of a new type of international relations featuring win-win cooperation, and create a peaceful, stable, just and reasonable international order. All sides should stick to choosing the development path based on their own national conditions and firmly oppose the intervention of external forces in their domestic affairs. The five countries should strengthen practical cooperation in such areas as anti-terrorism, outer space, energy security and network security within the BRICS framework, and promote international rules which can reflect each party’s interests and concerns in a balanced manner.
Fourth, jointly advance international cooperation in development and follow the path of sustainable development. All sides should strive for the effective docking of domestic development strategies and international development agendas. In line with the G20 Action Plan for the Implementation of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, BRICS countries should actively build a new type of global development partnership, and call on developed countries to fulfill their commitments of providing strong support for developing countries to achieve development goals. South-South cooperation should be strengthened to help other developing countries reinforce their development capacities, boarding them on the development express of BRICS countries. The five countries should boost practical cooperation within the BRICS framework, join hands to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and try to forge a new development pattern featuring joint construction by all stakeholders, balanced progress in all fields and shared prosperity for all classes.
Xi Jinping stressed that it has been ten years for BRICS cooperation since the first BRICS Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. It is believed that BRICS countries will surely achieve greater development as long as we uphold the BRICS spirit of openness, inclusiveness, cooperation and win-win results and continuously strengthen partnership despite hardship, distractions and difficulties.
Attending leaders held that remaining the outlook and impetus of economic growth, BRICS countries will continue to serve as an important engine for global economic growth. BRICS countries should, guided by the principles of openness, unity, equality, mutual understanding, inclusiveness and mutually beneficial cooperation, further strengthen strategic partnership and promote the establishment of an equal and fair international order on the basis of the international law.
Present leaders congratulated China on assuming the G20 presidency in 2016 and voiced their support. They are confident that the Hangzhou Summit will achieve fruitful results. Leaders of the five countries appreciated the importance China has attached to the agenda of development as the presidency, and agreed to intensify coordination on global issues of common concern of BRICS countries within the G20 framework and strengthen dialogues and cooperation with other emerging markets and developing countries.
Source : The official website of Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the People’s Republic of China. http://www.fmprc.gov.cn/mfa_eng/zxxx_662805/t1395092.shtml
PM Modi addresses BRICS leaders meet on the sidelines of G20 Summit
Source : The official Youtube account of the Prime Minister of India Narendra Modi.
The speech of the President of Russia Vladimir Putin at informal meeting of heads of state and government of BRICS countries
President of Russia Vladimir Putin: Mr Modi, Mr Xi Jinping, President Zuma, President Michel Temer,
I would like to start with our common strategy. We know that on the basis of the Strategy for BRICS Economic Partnership adopted at the last year’s BRICS summit in Ufa, Russia, new large-scale joint projects are being prepared for launch, primarily in technology, industrial cooperation, energy, and agribusiness.
We intend to expand contacts in other areas as well – in science, education, culture, on issues of social policy, healthcare and sport.
We support cooperation between our parliaments, regions, trade unions, youth organisations and civil societies.
Colleagues, we can see that contradictions in the world are indeed escalating. The rise of inequality between rich and poor nations is growing, the struggle for resources, for access to consumer markets, for control of transport arteries is becoming more intense. This is the backgrounds for the growing potential for conflict, as hotbeds of tension continue to multiply.
My Brazilian colleague has just mentioned the long crisis that has engulfed the Middle East and North Africa. Civil wars instigated from abroad, the disintegration of government structures in Iraq, Libya (which President Zuma spoke about with concern) and Yemen, have turned this region into a place of chaos and a foothold for international terrorism which troubles all of us, causing an uncontrollable wave of migration.
The expansion of ISIS and extremists of all stripes united under its banners has become a real security challenge for our countries as well, including Russia and its southern borders.
The most dangerous situation is in Syria, which has already been discussed here. This is why we responded to the request of the legitimate, let me stress, the legitimate government of that country for assistance in the fight against terrorist groups.
The Russian Aerospace Forces have dealt a heavy blow to the terrorists and their infrastructure, and have preserved Syrian statehood, which I think is absolutely vital.
Together with other partners we managed to enforce a ceasefire in some regions of Syria and to launch inter-Syrian talks, because ultimately this sort of conflict can only be resolved by political means. We are confident that terrorist threats can only be countered by uniting the efforts of all interested nations.
In general, the international community needs to work together to solve other complex problems, including those facing the global economy, as Mr Modi said, and Mr Xi Jinping as well.
Unfortunately, the world economy has still not overcome the effects of 2008–2009 financial crisis, and global growth is still uneven and very fragile. According to forecasts, growth is unlikely to reach the pre-crisis level before 2019. Among the limiting factors is the volatility on foreign exchange and commodity markets, the lack of coordination of monetary policies, and the high debt levels in developed economies.
In this regard, we support the priorities of China’s G20 presidency, aimed at stimulating the global economy – especially through the introduction of modern technologies.
We welcome Chinese President Xi Jinping’s intensive work to prepare this G20 Summit and its substantive package of final documents. It is encouraging that many of them build upon the G20 agreements made in the course of our joint work in St Petersburg, Russia.
It is important to strengthen our countries’ positions in the global financial system. I would like to congratulate our Chinese partners on the Special Drawing Right basket being expanded to include the Chinese yuan from October 1, 2016.
The BRICS states have already increased their total share in the IMF capital to 14.89 percent, very close to the blocking threshold of 15 percent. And they certainly need to continue in this direction, advancing the reform of the IMF.
We need to make the BRICS Pool contingent of foreign exchange reserves and the New Development Bank fully operational (here I totally agree with my colleagues), to adopt the bank’s strategy, to provide loans in local currencies, and to begin financing specific projects.
We are greatly concerned about the WTO situation, which was also mentioned here. That organisation is losing credibility, losing its status as the only universal negotiating platform for the development of global trade rules due to the stagnation of the Doha Round. As a result, various private associations, such as the Trans-Pacific Partnership and Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership, are gaining momentum; they seek to replace the WTO rather than complement it.
We see this as a response by some of our partners to difficulties they encountered in the course of WTO negotiations. But this is not the best way to solve problems. The best way is to negotiate and reach a compromise.
Russia calls for the harmonisation of regional economic formats, based on the WTO rules and principles, the principles of transparency and respect for each other’s interests.
It is in this spirit that we are shaping the Eurasian Economic Union’s activities and negotiating the linkage of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) and China’s Silk Road Economic Belt.
I am certain that in the future, all of the above will create a grand Eurasian partnership that is open to cooperation with all interested states and integration alliances.
We hope to discuss in more detail the prospects for our group’s development at the upcoming October 15–16 summit in Goa, India. On that note, we wish Mr Modi and all our Indian friends success in preparing that event.
Thank you.
Source : The official website of the President of Russia