Foreign Minister Javier González-Olaechea held a working meeting in Beijing with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi

The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Peru, Javier González-Olaechea Franco, held a working meeting with his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, at the “Diaoyutai State Guesthouse” in the city of Beijing. After the meeting – which lasted more than an hour – the Chinese foreign minister offered, at the same headquarters, a dinner in honor of the Peruvian foreign minister and his delegation.

His Chinese counterpart was accompanied, among others, by the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of China, Ms. Hua Chunying, and the director general for Latin America and the Caribbean of the Chinese Foreign Ministry, Mr. Cai Wei. For his part, the Peruvian Foreign Minister was accompanied, among others, by the Peruvian ambassador to China, Marco Balarezo, and the general director of Asia and Oceania of the Peruvian Foreign Ministry, ambassador Fernando Quirós.

TLC BILATERAL

Foreign Minister González-Olaechea agreed that it will be very important to conclude the negotiations as soon as possible to modernize the bilateral FTA so that everything can be ready for its signing next November.

He also highlighted that Peru aspires to be able to diversify its exports to China by increasing those with greater added value and, to that end, invited China to invest in raw materials transformation plants in Peru.

He recalled that both countries already have the legal framework to activate commercial cargo and passenger flights that connect Peru and China and expressed the aspiration that this could materialize soon, if possible, during 2024.

He also said that bilateral negotiations are underway to adopt an “Agreement to eliminate double taxation and prevent tax evasion and avoidance,” an instrument that will also facilitate the increase of investments.

CONNECTION

The Peruvian Foreign Minister, after transmitting the president’s greetings In Boluarte to President Xi Jinping and the high Chinese authorities, he highlighted the deep connection between Peru and China coming, on the one hand, from their respective ancient pasts, cradles of civilization; and, on the other hand, the very long connection between both peoples, especially since the mid-19th century when the first Chinese migrants arrived in Peru.

He recalled that, in 2013, both countries agreed to elevate our bilateral relationship to the status of “comprehensive strategic partnership” and that, since 2014, China has been Peru’s first trading partner and main investor.

He stressed that both countries share, as essential values, the search for peace and happiness, based on trust and mutual respect, with the commitment to build a shared future. In this framework, he highlighted the firm support of both countries to strengthen multilateralism, with the United Nations as its central axis, and to strict respect for international law and international humanitarian law.

POSTURE

González-Olaechea expressed Peru’s willingness to expand practical cooperation with China; strengthen and expand bilateral mechanisms between both countries in order to achieve more concrete and fruitful results.

Likewise, he delivered to his Chinese counterpart the original letter of invitation to President Xi Jinping, signed by President Dina Boluarte, to make a “State Visit” to Peru on dates adjacent to the celebration of the Cooperation Forum Leaders’ Summit. Asia-Pacific Economic Conference (APEC PERU 2024) scheduled to take place in Lima at the end of this year.

MEETING

Foreign Minister Wang Xi highlighted the meeting between Presidents Xi Jinping and Dina Boluarte held in November 2023, in San Francisco, USA, and highlighted the importance of presidential diplomacy as it provides, from the highest level, guidance necessary to boost the bilateral relationship and project it towards new and higher levels.

In this context, Foreign Minister Wang Yi announced his country’s interest in being able to receive President Dina Boluarte in China, so that she may carry out a State Visit during the course of this year. This would complete – according to the Chinese Foreign Minister – the character of 2024 as a particularly emblematic and favorable year to continue building mutually beneficial relations and a shared future between China and Peru.

The foreign ministers of Peru and China reviewed the progress made within the framework of the “Comprehensive Strategic Partnership” – agreed in 2013 – and agreed on the importance of continuing to expand it towards new fields of mutual interest such as the transition to a green economy (renewable energies). ; the digital economy and the digital transformation of production processes; investment in artificial intelligence in sectors such as manufacturing, services and agriculture; electronic commerce; digital medicine and telemedicine, among others.

JOINT SUPPORT

Wang Yi expressed his country’s interest in strengthening the coupling of development strategies with Peru and, within that framework, advancing the different cooperation proposals on issues of mutual interest, among them, joint cooperation to promote the initiative of the Belt and Road and the successful conclusion of ongoing negotiations to optimize the Peru-China Free Trade Agreement, in force since 2010.

The Chinese foreign minister reaffirmed his country’s broadest support for the presidency of the APEC Peru 2024 process and confirmed the participation of President Xi Jinping in the APEC Leaders Summit scheduled for next November.

González-Olaechea reaffirmed the firm commitment to continue guaranteeing legal security for all national and foreign investments in Peru and highlighted, in this framework, the very high importance of the development and upcoming inauguration of the Port of Chancay, which will mean a qualitative leap in favor of of Peru’s competitiveness and will allow the creation – along with other important investments and related projects – of a logistics, industrial, commercial and technological hub in the South Pacific, promoting economic projection and the incorporation of Latin America into the region’s value chains. Pacific Asia.

González-Olaechea indicated that Peru will support the draft resolution that China has presented to the United Nations General Assembly to establish a day that commemorates and promotes the “Dialogue between Civilizations.”