Stories of China's major-country diplomacy: Brazil and China enjoy strong friendship despite being geographically far apart

From Nov. 17 to 21 this year, Chinese President Xi Jinping traveled to Brazil for the 19th G20 Leaders' Summit and a state visit. My family, colleagues, friends, and I were all eagerly following President Xi's visit to Brazil, and I had the privilege of participating in several related events.

I was deeply touched by the enthusiastic atmosphere during the interaction between President Xi and Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva at the Alvorada Palace, the official residence of the Brazilian president, in Brasilia, the capital of Brazil.

Henrique Couto da Nobrega (Photo courtesy of the interviewee)

It was the first time President Lula had hosted a grand welcoming ceremony of the highest courtesy at his residence. He also arranged for a Brazilian soprano to sing the Chinese song "My Motherland" as a special greeting for President Xi.

President Xi listened to the Brazilian artist's performance with a smile, expressing his appreciation for the friendship between China and Brazil.

Throughout the visit, President Xi also listened attentively to voices from all sectors of Brazilian society, demonstrating his commitment to promoting mutual understanding between the two countries.

This left a particularly strong impression on me. I felt that President Xi is a wise, sincere, and approachable leader.

During the visit, President Xi and President Lula reached a new strategic consensus on the future of bilateral relations.

Most importantly, the two heads of state decided to elevate Brazil-China ties to a "community with a shared future for a more just world and a more sustainable planet."

They also agreed to align the Belt and Road Initiative with Brazil's development strategies.

A staff member checks the equipment that just rolled off the production line at XCMG Group's manufacturing base in Pouso Alegre, Brazil. (People's Daily/Shi Guanghao)

Following President Xi's successful visit, whenever I discuss the trip with my colleagues and friends, we all deeply feel the far-reaching impact of this visit.

This visit marked a significant milestone in Brazil-China relations, signaling deeper cooperation in such fields as trade, finance, technology, infrastructure, and environmental protection, and ensuring that the friendship between our two countries will be passed down for generations.

In the days leading up to the visit, I, along with over 100 friendly personages in Brazil, wrote letters to President Xi respectively, thanking the Chinese government, businesses, and universities for their contributions to Brazil-China friendly exchanges and improvements in local people's livelihoods.

To our surprise, we soon received a reply from President Xi. It was one of the most important moments of my life.

In his reply, President Xi expressed his hope that people from all walks of life in the two countries will play a positive role in promoting the continuous development of China-Brazil relations and making the China-Brazil friendship flow unceasingly like the Yangtze River and the Amazon River.

President Xi's reply reflected his deep affection for the Brazilian people and his high regard for Brazil-China relations. It also further strengthened the confidence of all sectors of Brazilian society in the cooperation between our two countries and injected new momentum into the development of Brazil-China friendship and relations.

As the current president of the Brazil-China Friendship Association, I have long been committed to promoting deep cooperation in various fields of culture, economy, and society between Brazil and China.

Photo shows the Belo Monte UHVDC transmission project in Brazil, which is invested, built and operated by a Chinese company. (Photo courtesy of State Grid Brazil Holding)

In October of this year, I attended the China International Friendship Conference marking the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Chinese People's Association for Friendship with Foreign Countries at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, where I had the opportunity to listen to President Xi's speech.

President Xi said that people-to-people friendship is the foundation for stable and long-term international relations, an unremitting driving force for promoting world peace and development, and a fundamental premise for achieving win-win cooperation.

These heartwarming words helped me develop a better understanding of President Xi's exceptional wisdom and leadership.

I have visited China many times and have been deeply impressed by the Chinese people's friendliness and hospitality as well as the country's cutting-edge technological innovations and achievements in green development.

I can still recall the keen interest Chinese friends have shown in Brazilian culture and how they have cherished our bilateral relationship.

In my view, bilateral exchanges are crucial. They can broaden the horizons of the people of both countries and allow us to learn from each other's strengths, thus creating opportunities for mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation and common development.

Brazil and China are good friends. Despite the geographic distance, the two peoples are closely connected. They share a common aspiration for a better life, though they have different languages and cultures.

I am full of optimism for the future of Brazil-China relations, and I firmly believe that the bonds of friendship and cooperation between our two countries will continue to strengthen, becoming a model of solidarity and mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation among major countries in global development.

(Henrique Couto da Nobrega is the president of Brazil-China Friendship Association. The article is compiled by People's Daily reporter Chen Yiming based on an interview with him.)