Xi's support nurtures overall cooperation between China, LAC nations

Forum has matured over past decade into a key platform for South-South collaboration

Invoked by the 18th century English writer Samuel Johnson, the phrase "From China to Peru "once conjured images of distant lands bound only by imagination. Today, it sketches a far more concrete arc — marked by shipping lanes, megaports and logistics corridors — linking China and Latin America across the Pacific.

This transformation has gathered pace over the past decade, thanks in large part to the China-CELAC (Community of Latin American and Caribbean States) Forum, a cooperative mechanism launched under the aegis of President Xi Jinping. What Xi once described as "a young seedling" has since taken firm root.

Ten years on, this mechanism has matured into a key platform for South-South collaboration that has drawn China and Latin American and Caribbean nations into a closer partnership across political, economic, cultural and other domains.

The forum's fourth ministerial meeting was held on Tuesday in Beijing. President Xi addressed its opening ceremony and unveiled new initiatives and measures to promote closer ties.

Qiu Xiaoqi, the Chinese government's special representative for Latin American affairs, said the meeting was expected to deliver a message of peace, development and cooperation amid global turbulence, charting a new chapter in China-LAC relations.