Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi Photo:fmprc.gov.cn

Chinese State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Tuesday attended BRICS Foreign Ministers' Extraordinary Conference to discuss the COVID-19 crisis and its impacts on international relations and further cooperation.

BRICS is the acronym for five major emerging economies, namely Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

Wang stressed the importance of global cooperation in the face of the pandemic and expressed his full support for the World Health Organization (WHO), which is under pressure from the US.

More lives can be saved by supporting WHO, and at a crucial moment in humanity's joint fight against the virus, any attempt to undercut the WHO's authority and obstruct its role will be most ill-timed and will find no support in the international community, Wang said in the meeting.

According to Wang, on top of paying its assessed contributions to the WHO on time and in full, China has recently donated $50 million to the organization, hoping that more money will be used in other developing countries.

US President Donald Trump announced in mid-April that he is halting funding for WHO over its mismanagement while defended his own handling of the epidemic in the US.

China is not pursuing geopolitical interests from active international cooperation in combating the virus. The international community should not be distracted by the blame game or the creation of new conflicts through politicization and stigma, he added.

Wang further stressed that the importance of global governance has been raised by the pandemic as the interests of all countries are closely linked. Besides, building a community with a shared future for mankind should be the right choice in line with the trend of our time.

Facing an unknown situation in a "post-pandemic" world, Wang believes that the pandemic will not change the theme of the times - peace and development, and will not interrupt the trend toward multi-polarity and globalization, or stop mankind from pursuing civilization and progress.

In the face of the crisis, we must take into account immediate needs and long-term goals, balance our own interests and the well-being of the world, jointly maintain a peaceful and stable international environment, and open up prospects for win-win development, noted Wang.

He urged BRICS countries to support multilateralism, defend the international system with the United Nations at its core and uphold the purposes and principles of the UN charter.

We need to safeguard the legitimate rights and interests and development space of BRICS countries and other emerging markets and developing countries, said Wang.

In the face of the pandemic, countries need to make the right decisions for history's sake, he said.

Global Times