Interview: China-Nicaragua cooperation "very fruitful" a year after resumption of diplomatic relations, says Nicaraguan trade advisor

MANAGUA, Dec. 13 (Xinhua) -- Cooperation between China and Nicaragua has been very fruitful and efficient in various fields a year after the resumption of their diplomatic relations, a Nicaraguan trade advisor has said.

Since resuming ties in December 2021, the two nations have maintained "an intense work agenda" that allowed them to reach "relevant agreements" on trade matters, and cooperate in economic, cultural, health and development areas, Laureano Ortega, advisor on investment, trade and international cooperation at the Nicaraguan president's office, told Xinhua.

A significant element in deepening bilateral ties, he said, will be the free trade agreement (FTA) currently under negotiation.

Meanwhile, Ortega stressed cooperation between the two countries in combatting the pandemic. Thanks in part to the vaccines and other medical supplies provided by China, Nicaragua has reached a vaccination rate of above 90 percent, he noted.

The "efficient and fast" development of cooperation, he said, is a sign of the brotherhood that exists between the people and governments of China and Nicaragua, as well as an indication that deepening the bilateral relationship has the "highest priority."

"There is a very special level of attention, a fraternity relationship between brotherly peoples and governments," Ortega said.

To celebrate the anniversary of the resumption of diplomatic relations, the Nicaraguan government and the Chinese embassy organized a series of activities, including concerts and a Chinese film festival, which, Ortega said, are bridges that unite the two nations' cultures, as art is a universal language.

"It is very special for us that we are ... carrying out these beautiful concerts and showing Chinese culture in Nicaragua through music and the Chinese film series," said the advisor.

The government of Nicaragua has very high expectations for strengthening bilateral commercial exchanges, especially exporting Nicaraguan products to the Chinese market, he said.

"Thanks to the (FTA) early harvest agreement that has already been signed, (and) thanks to the free trade agreement that we are promoting, the door will be opened to many Nicaraguan products," he said. Nicaragua hopes to import more from China for the Nicaraguan market.

"We want China to see Nicaragua as a regional platform. We are in the center of the Central American region and from here, Chinese products can be specially showcased for the rest of the countries in the region," he added.

Nicaragua's participation in the China International Import Expo (CIIE) in 2022 is another example of the deepening trade ties between Nicaragua and China, Ortega noted.

"It has been an excellent experience for Nicaragua to be there for the first time. Participation in the coming years will be more proactive ... The agreements we are signing will allow us to have an increasingly successful participation," he said.

On China's role in the world, Ortega said, "in these turbulent times for the world, with so many complexities, China has a fundamental role in providing an equilibrium, a balance, a reference point of development with responsibility, social justice and humanity."

"It fills us with pride to say that we have a brother government and people there," he said.