Beijing (TDI): China’s President, Xi Jinping, addressed the opening ceremony of the Fourth Ministerial Meeting of the China-CELAC (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) Forum, in Beijing today.
He announced a credit line of $9.2 billion (€8.3 billion) for the Latin American and Caribbean countries, credit that can only be availed in China’s own currency – Yuan.
In his opening address, President Xi also announced that China will adopt a visa free policy for five countries of the bloc; the name of which remain unknown yet.
“Although China lies far from the Latin American and Caribbean region, the two sides have a time-honored history of friendly exchanges,” Chinese President Xi Jinping was quoted saying by DW, in his address to the Forum.
President of Brazil, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, of Colombia, Gustavo Petro, and of Chile, Gabriel Boric, are among the most prominent attendees of the Forum. In addition, Ministers and representatives from Latin American and Caribbean countries are also in attendance.
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The Forum will look back on progress in trade, technology, and infrastructure, and agree on new projects in areas such as agriculture, energy, finance, and the Belt and Road Cooperation. This meeting is the Forum’s 10th anniversary.
China’s bilateral trade with this regional bloc was worth $427 billion from January to September 2024, as per official data. About two third of the region is China’s partner in its flagship Belt and Road Initiative.
China buys raw materials from Latina America, including copper, iron ore and minerals, and it has surpassed the United States to become the largest trading partner of Peru, Brazil, and Chile.
Before the Forum kickstarted, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi met his counterparts from Venezuela, Peru, Uruguay and Cuba yesterday, and extensively discussed free trade.
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Nuzhat Rana is the Managing Editor (website) at The Diplomatic Insight.
