—New Year Messages to the First Ministerial Meeting of the China-Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) Forum

At the presidential inauguration ceremony on January 1 in Brazil, Dilma Rousseff assumed her second term as Brazilian President. She expressed that her cabinet would continue working on developing relations with China and other BRICS countries.

In recent years, China has embraced close exchanges in the fields of politics, economy and trade as well as culture with Brazil and other Latin American and Caribbean states. Developing relations with China occupies an important position in the foreign polices of these countries. In particular, Brazil, Argentina and Venezuela fully expect to carry out broad cooperation with China.

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Latin American and Caribbean state leaders reached important consensus during their meeting in Brazil last July. They decided to establish the China-CELAC comprehensive cooperative partnership featuring equality, mutual benefit and common development and officially declared establishment of the China-CELAC Forum.

Leaders of both sides spare no efforts to push forward China-CELAC relations

In the last two years, leaders of China and CELAC states frequently exchanged ideas on how to promote cooperation and reached important consensus. In January 2014, all leaders of the CELAC agreed to establish the China-CELAC Forum at the CELAC Summit in Havana, Cuba.

Over the past decade, the trade between China and Latin American countries, such as Brazil and Argentina, has undergone a boom. The trade of commodities like iron ore and soybean has multiplied. Many CELAC states have enjoyed an increase of foreign exchange revenues through the booming trade with China, which help improve their fragile economies. Both sides need to map out a long-term plan for promoting their overall cooperation in a wide range, including energy, mineral resources, transportation, telecommunication and finance. Against such a backdrop, the China-CELAC Forum comes at the right time.

Venezuela is the fourth largest economy in Latin America and the Caribbean region. China and Venezuela have carried out extensive business cooperation in petroleum, telecom, aerospace, automobile, power, agriculture and mineral resources. Especially, the cooperation in all fields between the two countries has made rapid progress in the last 15 years. Nicolás Maduro Moros, President of Venezuela, said that "our advantages are abundant natural resources, funds and lands, and your technologies can optimize our investment" when he met Chinese entrepreneurs in December 2014. He also announced the establishment of three special economic zones that will provide favorable conditions for foreign investors. He hoped Chinese enterprises can invest and set up companies in these zones.

Goulart, professor of integration studies with University of Brasilia, told People's Daily that close trade ties and communication are increasingly shortening the "distance" between the CELAC and China. Their relations have enjoyed unprecedented development in recent years.

In a sense, the opening of the First Ministerial Meeting of the China-CELAC is inevitable for the two sides to develop close relations. Furthermore, it will provide greater opportunities for further deepening cooperation between the two sides.

Both sides should strengthen comprehensive cooperation and further deepen people-to-people exchange

Gonzales, Dean of International Relations Institute of the University of San Francisco Quito, Ecuador, said that China's foreign policy on Latin America conforms with the latter's wish to cooperate with China. In the last 20 years, China and Latin America have been maintaining sound relations by learning from each other and complementing their respective advantages. The distance and differences of ideology cannot stop their strong will to cooperate.

Both sides should enhance cooperation for common development. Coordinating official Adriana of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Costa Rica said that as the rotating presidency state of the CELAC in 2014, Costa Rica is honored to participate in organizing the first ministerial meeting of the Forum. Both China and CELAC states are strongly willing to carry out cooperation. At present, the cooperation between both sides is still at an early stage. The first ministerial meeting of the Forum will discuss regional issues and China will devote more contributions to Latin American affairs.

Goulart said that building the South American railway connecting Brazil and Peru is of great significance to the development of South America, which will open a new path from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean. China is willing to support the project with funds and technology.

China and CELAC states need to enhance mutual understanding. The Forum will offer a platform for the people-to-people and cultural exchanges. Currently, many Latin American countries have become destinations for Chinese tourists. The future of the shipping business between China and CELAC states is also promising.

Jaime Calderón Segovia, Principal of National Polytechnic School of Ecuador, told People's Daily that CELAC states want broad academic and cultural exchanges with China. The Confucius Institute has been established in Ecuador. Local people are very interested in learning Chinese. In addition, some Confucius Institutes serve as think tanks studying China. Many Latin American students want to go to China to learn skills and technologies.

China-CELAC relations will be more diverse in forms and the Forum more inclusive

In the future, China and CELAC states will develop their relations diversely. In the past, bilateral relations of both sides mainly focused on trade. At present, both sides have initiated cooperation on finance, energy and technology. China's renminbi has become the settlement currency in trade with some Latin American countries. A number of Chinese financial institutions have established branches in Brazil. A Chinese aerospace service provider has launched telecom satellites for Venezuela and Bolivia. China and Brazil also carry out technology cooperation on satellites. In 2015, the first commission on scientific and technological cooperation under the Forum will convene in Quito, capital of Ecuador. Calderón believes that with the help of the China-CELAC Forum, Chinese technologies will play an important role in upgrading industrial technologies and increasing productivity for Latin America.

Jorge Castro, President of the Institute for Strategic Planning of Argentina, told People's Daily that renminbi going international will have an important influence on the global economy in the future. Latin America should grasp this chance and achieve development with help of China's powerhouse. China is working to deepen domestic reform and advance renminbi as an international currency. In the next 10 years, around 30 percent of Chinese capital will possibly be invested abroad. At present, yuan is the seventh largest reserve currency in the world, and will become the second largest reserve currency by 2025.

Argentina has officially included renminbi into its foreign exchange reserve since October 30, 2014. The first 5 billion yuan was transferred to Argentina through the People's Bank of China in line with a currency swap agreement reached by the two sides. An official of the Argentine central bank said that renminbi is becoming an important world reserve currency. Many countries have made similar decisions under these circumstances.

In the future, the China-CELAC Forum will be more inclusive. Although 13 countries in Latin America still have not established diplomatic relations with China, this does not affect these countries' cooperation with China in economy and trade within the framework of the China-CELAC Forum. In fact, over the past 20 years, China has been shaping close ties with these countries in investment and trade.

Deng Xiping, President of Cathay Bank of Panama, told People's Daily that China is the second largest client using the Panama Canal. Panama has become a transfer and distribution center for Chinese commodities in Latin America. Chinese financial and maritime shipping companies have set up branches in Panama. Chinese enterprises also invest in some Central American states which have not established diplomatic relations with China. The Forum, where China and CELAC states discuss how to better promote cooperation, will help safeguard Chinese investment and trade in states that have not yet established diplomatic relations with China.