High-level exchanges strengthen trust between China, Brazil

Chinese President Xi Jinping is set to attend the BRICS summit in Brazil and visit three other Latin American countries from July 15 to 16. This year also marks the 40th anniversary of Sino-Brazil diplomatic ties.

Sino-Brazil relationship made a breakthrough in 2003 when Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva was elected president of Brazil, according to Zhou Zhiwei, a researcher with the Brazil Research Center of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. "High-level exchanges between China and Brazil had become frequent during the past 12 years since president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. The two countries have also strengthened mutual political trust and would continue to do so. "

Zhou says that Brazil has benefited greatly from the two sides' broad and deep cooperation. "Brazil is the country that has benefited the most from the BRICS mechanism, according to a report by Brazil's diplomatic community, and therefore, Brazil would continue to strengthen its strategic plans on the mechanism."

Zhou adds that cooperation among the BRICS countries is based on their common sense of identity. "Brazil recognizes China as an emerging big country that would help promote establishment of a new international order. China also recognizes Brazil as a big country in Latin America and an emerging country with certain international influence, which is an important partner."

He believes that President Xi Jinping's upcoming visit reveals Brazil and Latin American countries' rising importance in China's foreign policy and Brazil also highly values the visit, which they think is a landmark event. He says that the upcoming BRICS summit shows emerging countries' willingness to grow through south-south cooperation.