Youths called on to help bolster BRICS cooperation

Officials and young people from BRICS countries pose for a group photo on Wednesday during the 2024 BRICS Young Leaders Forum in Kazan, Russia. (REN QI/CHINA DAILY)

As the host country of this year's BRICS Summit, Russia pays high attention to youth exchanges and will continue to enhance bilateral cooperation with China in various fields among young people, a senior Russian official said on Wednesday.

Leyla Fazleeva, deputy prime minister of Russia's Republic of Tatarstan, said youths are a country's future and a strategic resource for society.

She said that Russia and China should strengthen cooperation in the spheres of the economy, culture, sports, education, and youth policy.

Fazleeva made the remarks at the 2024 BRICS Young Leaders Forum in Kazan, the capital of Tatarstan.

The forum, themed "New Opportunities for a Shared Future", was guided by the State Council Information Office of China, jointly organized by China Daily and the Embassy of China in Russia, and co-organized by 21st Century English Education Media and Kazan Federal University.

Government officials, media representatives, experts, and scholars from China and Russia, as well as youth representatives from BRICS countries, including China, Russia, India, South Africa, and Brazil, conducted in-depth discussions on the topic of widely mobilizing youth strength to promote practical BRICS cooperation, and hailed the development and cooperation of young people under the BRICS mechanism.

The youth representatives jointly released the BRICS Youth Cooperation and Development Initiative.

Wang Gang, deputy head of the Publicity Department of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said BRICS cooperation has become a main power for reshaping the international landscape and maintaining global stability.

Wang encouraged the young people to promote the BRICS spirit, which enables China and Russia to achieve mutually beneficial cooperation.

Chinese Ambassador to Russia Zhang Hanhui said the BRICS mechanism has made a historic expansion, starting a new era of joint action to strengthen the Global South and give it a louder voice in response to the challenges of the century, which will further strengthen its international influence, attractiveness and ability to shape the global agenda.

Noting that the BRICS Summit will be held in Kazan in October, Zhang said he was sure that the leaders of the countries will discuss "such topics as strengthening the BRICS mechanism, promoting South-South cooperation and protecting international justice, which will lead to the development of important new agreements".

In a written message delivered to the forum, Qu Yingpu, publisher and editor-in-chief of China Daily, said the BRICS countries have always been advocates and practitioners of an independent foreign policy, upholding the BRICS spirit of openness, inclusiveness, and win-win cooperation.

"I hope that the youth of BRICS will always understand and support each other, unite closely, explore and innovate, and with a broad international perspective and vibrant youth, vigorously promote cooperation in various fields, and write a brilliant chapter for the younger generation in the era of Greater BRICS," Qu said.

Russian former deputy prime minister Sergey Shakhray noted that the population of BRICS countries accounts for almost 45 percent of the world's total, and their gross domestic product accounts for over 35 percent of the world's total. But most importantly, BRICS countries have become a true youth federation, as almost two-thirds of the population are people under the age of 35.