Brics countries can promote peace, stand against 'new cold war': China's Wang Yi

South China Morning Post  Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi has called on the Brics countries to promote peace, stand against a "new cold war" and "take greater responsibilities and actions" in world affairs during a multilateral meeting with his counterparts in the Global South.

Foreign ministers from Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa were joined by their counterparts from new members Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, at the two-day summit in Nizhny Novgorod in Russia, which assumed chairmanship of the Brics grouping in January.

In his remarks on Monday, Wang welcomed the bloc's expansion and celebrated interstate cooperation over the past year, which he said has been "remarkable, rapid and strong".

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"The strategic significance and political effects of the 'greater Brics' should be fully leveraged to make Brics a new type of multilateral cooperation mechanism based on emerging markets and developing countries, and [one that is] open and inclusive to the world," he said, according to a report from Chinese state news agency Xinhua.

The combined Brics gross domestic product in purchasing power parity terms amounts to about one-third of world GDP, exceeding that of the Group of Seven.

Wang said the Global South was "gaining strength through unity" and should promote "equitable and orderly" multipolarism to set the tone for future global development.

"Brics should adhere to independence and objectivity, promote the international community's consensus on peace, and oppose the instigation of a 'new cold war' under any pretext," he added.

Wang again called for a ceasefire in Gaza and urged support for Palestine's full membership at the United Nations. Peace talks between Russia and Ukraine based on "equal participation from all parties and fair discussion of all peace proposals" would be supported by China, he said.