The ninth round of consultations between Chinese foreign ministers and nine Caribbean countries ended today with consensus to join forces and strengthen mutual trust to face together the challenges of today’s world.
According to an official statement, the parties have chosen to uphold the basic norms of international relations, strengthen unity and protect the rules-based multilateral system centered on the United Nations.
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said they will work to consolidate their comprehensive strategic partnership, increase official exchanges and also further expand cooperation in areas such as trade, infrastructure construction, education, culture and tourism.
He commended the development of mutual relations since the establishment 50 years ago, called on the international community to pay more attention to the challenges faced by small island states, and assured that Beijing is willing to establish a fair and win-win system in the climate field.
The statement said the Caribbean people have proposed increasing cooperation within China’s Belt and Road Initiative to speed up the industrialization process in their area. They thanked the Asian giant for its support in the face of natural disasters and the Covid-19 pandemic, cataloged it as a reliable and important partner in the region, and expressed support for its efforts to uphold sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Wang and Dominica Prime Minister Roosevelt Skerrit chaired the video-linked consultations, bringing together the foreign ministers of that island, Suriname, Barbados, Antigua and Barbuda, Grenada, Trinidad and Tobago, Bahamas, Guyana and Jamaica.
The last such meeting took place in Beijing in February 2019.