CHINA TOPIX

12/22/2024 10:15:51 pm

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China-LatAm Cooperation To Be Propelled By Three Engines - Xi Jinping

Xi's departure from Cuba

(Photo : REUTERS/Liu Bin) Cuba's President Raul Castro waves goodbye to China's President Xi Jinping as he departs from Cuba. Xi ended an eight-day trip through Latin America with a visit to Cuba, where he presided over the signing of 29 trade, debt, credit and other agreements.

Chinese president Xin Jinping recently said that the future of China's cooperation with partner Latin American countries lies on trade, investment and financial cooperation.

"Our partnership with the Latin American countries will be propelled to new heights by three engines: Trade, investment and financial cooperation," said during his meeting with participants of the Community of Latin American and Carribean States.

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Xi visited Latin America to partake in the assembly of BRIC country members last week to discuss China's role in strengthening social and economic prerogatives of developing nations.

On Thursday, Xi returned to China from Cuba, which is the last leg of his visit around South America.

Observers said that Xi's trip has been successful. The Chinese president secured an impressive number of trade and other agreements that would step up China's strategic partnerships with its Latin American counterparts. 

Some of the agreements signed include the construction of a 1.600 kilometer-long railway in Central Brazil, agreements worth US$7 billion with Argentina and an upgraded comprehensive strategic partnership with Venezuela with regard to the latters 500,000 barrels of Venezuelan oil.

While in Cuba, Xi cemented the friendship between the two countries, and also here signed several billion dollars-worth of agreements.

Before leaving communist left Cuba, Xi ended his trip with an ancient Chinese poem.

"Bosom friends make distance disappear," which in a poetic way describes the relations between Latin American countries and China very exact.

In the years before, the trade relations between China and Latin America were focused on primary and manufactured goods. For example, 20 percent of China's imports of crude oil and 60 percent of imported soybeans came from Latin America.

Recently, China has been diversifying the form of investments it makes in Latin America.

China began looking for mergers and cooperation with local enterprises and expanded the areas for cooperation from natural resources to infrastructure and finance.

With Xi's recent visit to the Latin American and Caribbean countries, the strategy proved fruitful and has their relations a step further.

Bilateral trade has already increased from US$12.6 billion in 2000 to US$261.6 billion in 2013.

According to Xi, the goal is to reach US$500 billion within the next ten years, propelled by the three engines of trade, investment and financial cooperation.

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