The President of Uruguay, Luis Lacalle Pou, made a state visit to China this week, where he met with his counterpart Xi Jinping. After this meeting, both governments signed a 25-point Joint Declaration where the decision is expressed to raise bilateral relations to the new level of Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
The following is the full text of the Joint Declaration, published today (23.11.2023) by both nations:
1. At the invitation of the President of the People's Republic of China, Xi Jinping, the President of the Eastern Republic of Uruguay, Luis Lacalle Pou, made a State Visit to the People's Republic of China between November 20 and 24, 2023.
2. Throughout the 35 years elapsed since the establishment of diplomatic relations Between China and Uruguay, both Parties have been promoting the continuous development of bilateral ties, in accordance with the principles of equal treatment, mutual benefits and shared gains. Sino-Uruguayan relations have been marked by the construction of a solid political trust cemented in the meetings of all the Heads of State of both countries throughout these three and a half decades of friendship. During the Visit, both Heads of State held a fruitful meeting in which they exchanged views on the bilateral agenda, relations between China and Latin America and the Caribbean and international and regional issues of common interest, marking a new milestone in binational relations. The Premier of the State Council of China, Li Qiang, and the Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress, Zhao Leji, held respective meetings with President Lacalle Pou.
3. Both Heads of State reaffirm the consensus contained in the Joint Declaration between the People's Republic of China and the Eastern Republic of Uruguay on the Establishment of Strategic Partnership issued in October 2016, which has established the roadmap for the comprehensive implementation of this Strategic Partnership over the past seven years. Both Parties agreed that, with the establishment of the China-Uruguay Strategic Partnership, both countries have witnessed the fruitful development of bilateral relations and the deepening of mutual trust. The deepening of Sino-Uruguayan ties corresponds to the fundamental interests of both countries. Considering the great potential for expanding and deepening mutually friendly cooperation between both countries, China and Uruguay have decided to upgrade bilateral relations to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.
4. Both Parties note that next year will mark the 65th anniversary of the parliamentary friendship between the two countries. This event commemorates the first visit of a President of the House of Representatives of Uruguay to China in 1959. Both Parties welcome the strengthening of ties and exchanges between the Legislative Bodies.
5. Both sides stressed that political mutual trust constitutes the primary basis of the China-Uruguay Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. The sides reiterate mutual respect for national sovereignty and territorial integrity, as well as mutual understanding and support for each other's core interests and major concerns.
The Uruguayan side highly values the development achievements that China has made, and appreciates China's efforts to comprehensively promote the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation with Chinese modernization, considering that China has provided new paths and options for mankind to realize modernization.
The Uruguayan side reaffirms its adherence to the one-China principle, recognises that the Government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legitimate government representing all of China and that Taiwan is an inalienable part of Chinese territory, and supports the efforts of the Chinese Government to achieve national reunification.
The Uruguayan side also reaffirms its support for China's fair position on issues related to its core interests, such as Hong Kong, and for China's efforts to safeguard national sovereignty and security.
6. Both Parties will strengthen high-level contacts, promoting exchanges between the different ministries. They will also intensify cooperation between their Ministries of Foreign Affairs, using the mechanism of Political Consultations, maintaining a channel of communication and coordination that will allow for the broadening of consensus and the consolidation of mutual political trust on an ongoing basis, in aspects of the bilateral relationship and other issues of common interest.
7. The Parties agree that practical cooperation is an important part of the Uruguay-China Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. With a view to promoting the comprehensive improvement of the level of bilateral cooperation in various fields, they are willing to strengthen the synergies between their development strategies and the complementarity of their economies.
Taking into account the Memorandum of Understanding between the Government of the Eastern Republic of Uruguay and the Government of the People's Republic of China on Cooperation within the framework of the Silk Road Economic Belt Initiative and the 5st Century Maritime Silk Road, it is agreed to promote the implementation of the Bilateral Cooperation Plan on Promoting the Joint Construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the XNUMXst Century Maritime Silk Road between the Government of the People's Republic of China and the Government of the Eastern Republic of Uruguay, which was signed on this occasion. This will involve advancing, within the framework of the joint construction of the Belt and the Road in different areas such as energy, food, industry, waterworks, mining, tax affairs, maritime transport, ports, logistics, industrial investment, information and communications, deep-sea fishing ports, and the establishment of railway infrastructure and joint research laboratories. Both Parties encourage strengthening productive linkages between both regions and increasing trade and the provision of services, taking advantage of the geographical advantages that Uruguay offers as a logistics hub in the South Atlantic. The Uruguayan Party reaffirms the principle of technological neutrality and welcomes the participation of Chinese companies in the construction of Uruguay's XNUMXG network. Both Parties are willing to jointly promote the creation of the Belt and Road Tax Academy in Spanish.
8. The Parties welcome the sustained increase in trade flows and agreed to expand them further by stimulating the diversification of export baskets of products, increasing trade in services and increasing cooperation in trade facilitation. They value positively the role of the Joint Economic-Commercial Commission in deepening bilateral trade ties, and the launching of the activities of the Working Group on Investment and Economic Cooperation, to further deepen strategic cooperation in both sectors and report its successes to the XXII Joint Economic-Commercial Commission. They undertake to continue exchanging information on specific investment projects seeking financing and to give the widest possible publicity to available infrastructure and investment projects.
In order to improve the regulatory framework governing reciprocal investments, both Parties decide to initiate negotiations for the updating of the Agreement on the Promotion and Reciprocal Protection of Investments, signed by China and Uruguay on December 2, 1993.
9. Both Parties welcome the completion of the Joint Feasibility Study on a possible Uruguay-China Free Trade Agreement (FTA). Taking into account the conclusions of the Study, they reaffirm their willingness to promote the construction of a free trade association. On the other hand, both Parties are willing to promote dialogue on free trade between Mercosur and China.
10. Both sides stress the importance of financial cooperation and Uruguay has presented its experiences in issuing bonds indexed to environmental sustainability indicators. China welcomes Uruguay as a non-Asian member of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) and the first non-BRICS Latin American member of the New Development Bank (NDB), and supports the Uruguayan side in strengthening communication with the NDB to complete the accession process as soon as possible and become a full member.
11. Both Parties recognize the common challenges facing the sustainable management and use of food resources and will jointly promote research on laws, regulations, policies and technologies for post-production food management and loss reduction.
12. The Parties highlighted the positive results of cooperation in the field of agriculture, in particular the progress of the Joint Laboratory on Soybeans and Innovation of the Belt and Road between the National Institute of Agricultural Research of Uruguay (INIA) and the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), and therefore agreed to deepen cooperation through the mechanisms of joint laboratories.
13. The Parties reaffirmed the importance of cooperation in agricultural science and technology; biomedicine; nanotechnology and pharmacy; information, communication and mechatronics integration technologies; and the following priority areas for future cooperation: digital technology applied to innovation, biotechnology applications and technologies with an impact on the green economy. They are also willing to actively promote the construction of the China-Uruguay Joint Laboratory in bio-nano-pharma.
14. Both Parties reaffirm the importance of cooperation in areas such as equipment manufacturing, new energy vehicles, high-tech parks, communication infrastructure and artificial intelligence, among others. The Uruguayan Party takes note of, and will carefully study, the Initiative for Global Governance of Artificial Intelligence, proposed by the Chinese Party.
15. Underlining the importance of sustainable development and ecological protection for both countries, the Parties agree on the importance of promoting cooperation in these areas, highlighting issues such as: management of chemicals and waste, plastics, climate change and ozone, restoration and biological management of forests, grasslands, wetlands and nature reserves, challenges of the blue economy and sustainable fishing, among others. The Parties renew their interest in working together in the areas of renewable energy and energy transition and efficiency, highlighting the potential of sustainable mobility and green hydrogen and derivatives projects in both Uruguay and China, as well as the importance of promoting reciprocal investments in this area.
16. Both sides are willing to deepen cooperation in the fields of geology and minerals, developing cooperation in basic geological research, regional geological surveys, exploration of agates, amethysts and other basalt-related mineral resources, and sustainable development of mineral resources. Both sides decide to convene the second meeting of the ROU-China Antarctic Cooperation Committee to promote Antarctic cooperation.
17. Both Parties agree to expand educational cooperation, increase scholarships for study and research, develop Chinese language teaching in Uruguay, as well as support for the construction of new Confucius Classrooms and Institutes and the Uruguay-China Research Center. The Uruguayan Party reiterates its willingness to begin implementing a Mandarin Chinese teaching program using Ceibal's digital education resources, which are available to the entire population in the country's public primary and secondary education.
18. Both Parties express their firm will to take measures to promote greater exchanges of tourists, business people, athletes, students, researchers and teachers. They also agree to deepen cooperation in the areas of education, technological innovation, culture, sport, tourism and health. Contacts between the media, artists and youth organizations will be encouraged, and student exchanges will be increased in order to continuously strengthen knowledge and friendship between peoples.
19. In the area of defence, they agreed to move forward with the implementation of the recently signed cooperation agreements; to continue to deepen cooperation in traditional areas; and to intensify contacts between the senior commanders and personnel of the two armies. They stressed the importance of United Nations Peacekeeping Operations and the desirability of mutual support in them.
20. Both sides agree to continuously promote the rapid development of sports cooperation, deepen cooperation between mass sports and competitive sports, and strengthen communication and coordination in international sports affairs.
21. Both sides agree on the importance of jointly safeguarding the common values of mankind, namely peace, development, equity, justice, democracy and freedom. The Uruguayan side appreciates the contributions made by the concept of building a community with a shared future for mankind proposed by President Xi Jinping to realizing world peace and development. Uruguay has joined the Global Development Initiative proposed by President Xi Jinping, while appreciating the Initiatives for Global Security and Global Civilization.
Both sides agree that Uruguay and China share broad common interests in many international and regional issues. In this regard, they reiterate their firm support for the international system centered around the UN and the multilateral trading system centered on the World Trade Organization, highlighting the importance of free trade, environmental protection and South-South cooperation. China and Uruguay are both developing countries and are willing to strengthen cooperation and jointly safeguard the legitimate rights and interests of developing countries. In this context, they reiterate the importance of maintaining close coordination in multilateral forums and continuing to provide mutual support there. China welcomes Uruguay's accession to the International Bamboo and Rattan Organization (INBAR) based in Beijing.
22. At the regional level, both Parties undertake to continue coordinating actions to promote greater dynamism in the China-CELAC Forum, with a view to holding the China-CELAC Summit of Heads of State in 2024 as planned.
23. In the presence of both Heads of State, more than 20 agreements were signed in the areas of trade and investment promotion. The following are of particular note: the Bilateral Cooperation Plan for Promoting the Joint Construction of the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st Century Maritime Silk Road, the Memorandum of Understanding on Exchange and Cooperation in the Field of Economic Development, the Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in Industry and Communications, the Memorandum of Understanding on Strengthening Cooperation in the Digital Economy, the Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation for Green and Low-Carbon Development, the Memorandum of Understanding on Promoting Investment Cooperation in Green Development, the Memorandum of Understanding on Strengthening Investment Cooperation in the Digital Economy, the Memorandum of Understanding on the Establishment of the Working Group for Trade Fluidity, as well as cooperation documents in the fields of agriculture and fisheries, health, culture, justice, scientific and technological innovation and customs quality inspection and quarantine.
24. Uruguay appreciates the donations received from China, in particular those of medical equipment and supplies to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. The Uruguayan Party also appreciates the provision of vaccines and the exchange of knowledge and experiences with the Chinese Party that took place during the pandemic. The symbolic value of the donation that allowed the construction of a primary school named after the People's Republic of China in the Casavalle neighbourhood of Montevideo, inaugurated last year, is highlighted, as well as Uruguay's interest in promoting similar initiatives in the future. The Uruguayan Party expresses its gratitude to the Chinese Party for its donation of the U-MTGS (for its acronym in English). Both Parties highlighted the importance of the projects financed within the framework of the Economic and Technical Cooperation Agreements signed since 2004, and will promote the implementation of new projects in areas such as security.
Both Parties agreed to intensify contacts and coordination between development cooperation authorities of both countries with a view to improving the implementation of projects that promote the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), fostering closer dialogue between development cooperation agencies of both countries. They also agreed to promote South-South and Triangular cooperation to support the efforts of developing countries in achieving these Goals.
25. President Luis Lacalle Pou thanks the Chinese people and Government for their hospitality and the attention he has received, and stresses his desire to continue developing the friendship between the two Governments and peoples and to further raise the level of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. To this end, he reiterates his invitation to President Xi Jinping to visit Uruguay.
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