International observation: China Pakistan relations have great potential to carry on the past and open up the future

2023 is an important year in the history of China Brazil relations.   Next year will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries, and China Pakistan relations will continue to move forward with great potential.
In 2023, China and Pakistan maintained close high-level exchanges, effectively enhancing bilateral political mutual trust. The leaders of the two countries led the opening of a new future of China Pakistan comprehensive strategic partnership from a strategic and long-term perspective.     During the visit, the two heads of state jointly witnessed the signing of multiple bilateral cooperation documents in areas such as trade and investment, digital economy, technological innovation, information and communication, poverty reduction, quarantine, and aerospace. Both sides have issued a joint statement on deepening the comprehensive strategic partnership between the People's Republic of China and the Federal Republic of Brazil, emphasizing the continued promotion of dialogue and exchanges, deepening cooperation in poverty reduction, social development, and technological innovation, and expanding cooperation in new fields such as environmental protection, climate change response, low-carbon economy, and digital economy. China and Brazil also issued the China Brazil Joint Statement on Climate Change, reaffirming their common position, principles, and cooperation direction on climate change issues, and deciding to establish an Environment and Climate Change Subcommittee under the China Brazil High Level Coordination and Cooperation Committee. 

At the same time, the two countries continue to promote dialogue and coordination in regional and international affairs, strengthen exchanges and cooperation under multilateral mechanisms such as the United Nations, the G20, and the BRICS, and promote the development of the global governance system towards a more just and reasonable direction. On August 24th, with the support and witness of the heads of state of China and Pakistan, six countries including Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Argentina, Iran, and Ethiopia were invited to join the BRICS cooperation mechanism, greatly enhancing the representativeness and influence of the BRICS countries. In addition to the joint action between China and Pakistan to address climate change, the two countries have strengthened cooperation on global security governance issues. They not only reached a consensus on the political resolution of the Ukrainian crisis during the summit, but also closely coordinated and cooperated on the issue of the Palestinian Israeli conflict, working together under the framework of the Security Council to ease the situation. Not only that, with the joint efforts of both sides, on November 21st, the BRICS Leaders' Special Video Summit on the Palestinian Israeli Issue was held, and a joint statement was issued after the meeting to voice the "BRICS" call for promoting the resolution of the Palestinian Israeli issue.

In 2023, China Pakistan economic and trade relations continued to deepen, bilateral trade steadily developed, and investment cooperation became increasingly diversified. Since 2009, China has been Brazil's largest trading partner for 14 consecutive years. According to official data from the Brazilian government, the total trade volume between China and Brazil exceeded 100 billion US dollars from January to August this year, setting a record high for the same period since relevant statistics were available in 1997. From January to November 2023, Brazil's exports to China increased by 14% year-on-year, with bilateral trade reaching $145.9 billion, bringing Brazil a surplus of $47.44 billion. China continues to remain Brazil's largest export target country and largest source of imports. The latest report from the Council of Entrepreneurs between Brazil and China (CEBC) shows that from 2007 to 2022, China invested a total of $71.6 billion in 235 projects in Brazil. In 2022, China added 32 new investment projects to Brazil, a year-on-year increase of 14%, involving multiple fields such as power energy, information technology, automobile manufacturing, infrastructure, agriculture, and textiles. On February 7th, the People's Bank of China announced that it had recently signed a memorandum of cooperation with the Central Bank of Brazil to establish a RMB clearing arrangement in Brazil, which would facilitate cross-border transactions between Chinese and Brazilian enterprises and financial institutions using the RMB and further promote bilateral trade and investment facilitation.
In 2023, cultural exchanges and cooperation between China and Pakistan continue to advance, and various sectors of society such as think tanks, universities, media, and enterprises continue to strengthen dialogue. The public opinion foundation of bilateral relations is even more solid. Since this year, the two sides have carried out a series of academic discussions and experience exchanges on issues such as global development and governance, civilization exchange and mutual learning, Chinese path to modernization, green energy development and cooperation. The first China Brazil provincial and state economic and trade cooperation seminar was successfully held, and the Confucius Institute of Bahia Federal University was successfully inaugurated. Chinese enterprises in Pakistan actively fulfill their social responsibilities and engage in public welfare while promoting local economic development and creating employment opportunities. In February of this year, State Grid Brazil Electric Power Company held a commissioning ceremony for the brackish water desalination public welfare project established in Joon Camara, Beidahe Prefecture. With Chinese independent products and advanced technology, it solved the drinking water problem for more than 3000 people in three local indigenous communities, becoming a vivid case of Chinese companies in Brazil actively integrating into local society and engaging in bilateral practical cooperation to benefit the Brazilian people.
In 2024, we will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan, which provides an important opportunity for the two countries to push bilateral relations to a new level. Development is the core issue of the Lula government. In the face of a troubled world, the two countries can actively promote the joint construction of the "the Belt and Road" initiative with Brazil's "Reindustrialization" and the new version of the "Accelerated Growth Plan" to help promote the modernization process of the two countries; By holding a series of activities to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations, we aim to promote friendly exchanges between China and Pakistan, deepen traditional friendship, and enhance people to people exchanges.
As the rotating chair of the G20 in 2024, President Lula recently publicly stated that fighting hunger, poverty, and inequality, sustainable development, and global governance reform are the three major priorities for Brazil's G20 work. To this end, China and Pakistan can further strengthen exchanges and mutual learning in fighting hunger and poverty, unleash the potential for cooperation in the fields of green economy and sustainable development, closely coordinate and cooperate with multilateral mechanisms such as the G20 on global governance reform, and together contribute to the international community's response to global challenges, continuously enriching the connotation of China Pakistan's comprehensive strategic partnership.
(The author is an assistant researcher at the International Relations Research Office of the Latin American Institute of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the Deputy Secretary General of the Brazilian Research Center)