A South-South cooperation framework

The opening of the China-CELAC Forum (CELAC is the abbreviation of Community of Latin America and Caribbean States) in Beijing follows the intense activity the two sides have had over the past years.

President Xi Jinping has visited the region twice in two years. During his last visit in July 2014, he attended the China-Latin America and the Caribbean Leaders Summit in Brasilia, Brazil, where the establishment of the forum was announced. More than 11 heads of state of Latin American countries have visited China during the same period. And high-ranking officials and scholars from different institutions in China and CELAC have exchanged visits to promote and smoothen dialogue.

The forum in Beijing this week, which will bring together the presidents of Cuba, Ecuador, Costa Rica and Bahamas, and foreign ministers and other high-level officials from China and CELAC countries, will undoubtedly be a milestone in China-CELAC relations. It comes after a dynamic decade of trade and economic relations; two-way trade jumped from $12 billion in 2000 to $261.75 billion in 2013.