Chinese president calls on developing nations to jointly meet challenges

Chinese President Hu Jintao (2nd R) poses for a group photo with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (2nd L), Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh (1st L), Mexican President Felipe Calderon (C) and South African President Thabo Mbeki ahead of their meeting in Berlin, capital of Germany, June 7, 2007. (Xinhua/Liu Jiansheng)

Chinese President Hu Jintao says developing countries should do more to meet the challenges that come with economic globalization. He made the call in a speech on the sidelines of the G8 where he also met leaders from Brazil, India, Mexico and South Africa.

Earlier on Thursday, President Hu also held meetings with his Nigerian counterpart, Umaru Yar'Adua and Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh.

Hu Jintao says the world economy has seen a new round of growth and that developing countries are looking for ways to expand that also match their national conditions. He also noted that developing countries have become an important force in maintaining world peace and promoting common development.

But President Hu also pointed out that such countries are often disadvantaged in the course of world development and that economic globalization is presenting new challenges.

Hu Jintao says the populations of China, India, Brazil, South Africa and Mexico account for just over 40 percent of the world's total adding that the five major developing countries have an increasingly important place in global economy and trade.

President Hu put forward a three-point proposal to safeguard common interests, create favorable development conditions and boost coordinated development.

The first point is to enhance coordination and expand space for development. He says developing countries should urge the United Nations to boost input for development and strive to increase their say in the global economy. Hu Jintao has also stressed that developed countries should meet their commitments and provide more assistance for developing countries. He's suggested that developed countries write off or reduce debts, and increase investment in, and technology transfer to, their less developed counterparts.

Hu Jintao's second point is to step up cooperation, especially in such areas as trade, investment, personnel training, infrastructure, culture, education and health. He said new platforms, such as the Summit of South American-Arab Countries, the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation and the India-Brazil-South Africa Dialogue Forum, have also boosted South-South cooperation.

The last point he proposed was to maintain and improve meeting mechanisms. President Hu says the five countries should prepare well for meetings among their leaders and within the UN framework. He says they should also take follow-up steps afterwards, maintain close consultations, share experiences and expand common ground to achieve concrete progress.

Hu Jintao emphasized that China supports continued dialogue between developing and developed countries. He said it is necessary to increase the say of developing countries, and work to establish a new global partnership for development based on equality and mutual benefit.

In the meeting, the leaders from the five nations also pledged to abide by the principle of "common but differentiated responsibilities" while tackling climate change. They urged developed nations to take the lead in reducing greenhouse gas emission.

On the Doha round of WTO trade talks, the leaders said efforts should be made to conclude negotiations at an early date, and that results should reflect the interests and concerns of developing countries. They also urged developed nations to reduce subsidies for agricultural products and lower import tariffs.