Where is Xi Jinping? Chinese leader's unusual absence at BRICS Business Forum raises eyebrows
China's Minister of Commerce Wang Wentao
The BRICS Business Forum kicked off in South Africa’s Johannesburg on Tuesday (Aug 22) to discuss a wide range of economic issues, including the current state of cooperation in trade and investment, strengthening ties, and removing bottlenecks among the member countries.
Among the leaders who were present in the forum were Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, and Brazilian President Lula da Silva. But someone was missing.
Putin addresses event virtually
While Russian President Vladimir Putin addressed the event virtually, there was one leader whose absence was conspicuous, given that he was one of the earliest to arrive at the South African city for the summit. That was Chinese President Xi Jinping.
After Ramaphosa, Lula and Modi addressed the forum, Chinese Commerce Minister Whang Wentao delivered a statement on behalf of Xi Jinping.
In the brief speech, Wentao denounced “countries obsessed with maintaining hegemony” for sabotaging the growth of developing nations, an effort he said is “futile”.
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Quoting Xi, Wentao called for an end to one-dimensional views of states that divide them into artificial categories like “liberal” or “authoritarian”.
Though it was known that Putin won’t be coming to South Africa due to an arrest warrant issued by the International Criminal Court over war crimes in Ukraine, it was surprising that Xi did not turn up for the event.
So far, no reason has been provided for Xi’s absence, and the stoic silence from the officials has left much room for speculation.
Xi metRamaphosa
Earlier in the day, Xi met with Ramaphosa ahead of the summit on just his second international trip of the year.
"Now as friends andBRICSpartners, we stand together in our shared objective and quest for a better and more egalitarian world that frees the potential of all the people in the world," said Ramaphosa in Pretoria at the opening of Xi's state visit.
"Today, standing at a new historical starting point, inheriting friendship, deepening cooperation, and strengthening coordination are the common aspirations of the two countries, and are also the important tasks entrusted to us by the times," said Xi.
Ahead of this summit, at least 40 countries have expressed interest in joining including Iran, Saudi Arabia, Bangladesh and Argentina, officials say.
South Africa will presentBRICSleaders with a proposal to expand its membership and a decision on the matter is expected at the summit's close.
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