Tasso Jereissati, former governor of the state of Ceara, Brazil, reflected on Chinese President Xi Jinping's first visit to the Latin American country in 1996, a trip that took place when Xi was serving as deputy secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Fujian Provincial Committee.
Xi, who will travel to Brazil for the G20 Summit after attending the upcoming 31st APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in Peru, visited the state of Ceara during that trip nearly three decades ago, where he signed a memorandum of understanding to establish a sister province/state relationship between east China's Fujian Province and Ceara.
Jereissati described Xi's visit as an exceptional and unique opportunity.
"China was just beginning to open up to the world, and we, here in Ceará, were making an effort to engage more with the international community, expanding our economic and cultural ties," he said.
Sharing his impressions of Xi, he noted that the Chinese president was "very attentive, an excellent listener, and very curious".
"He wanted to learn about our culture and economy, understand our main activities, and explore the reasons behind certain things. He spoke a lot about the exchange of information and cultural experiences. There was a great interest in promoting Chinese culture and also understanding our culture," said Jereissati.
The former governor believes there are immense prospects for future cooperation between the two countries.
"I think the potential is enormous. I believe we can be very complementary. We have many opportunities here that are not necessarily opportunities in China, and vice versa. Today, China is a different country -- it is a superpower that it wasn't at that time. I see several opportunities, including those we could foster, for example, through tourism, encouraging us to get to know each other better for a more multicultural world," he said.
Former state governor recalls President Xi's first visit to Brazil
Permanent representative of Israel to the United Nations (UN) Danny Danon on Thursday denied that any discussions had occurred between Israel and the UN regarding delivering humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Danon made these remarks at the UN headquarters in response to a query from a China Central Television (CCTV) reporter about the ongoing failure to deliver humanitarian aid to Gaza.
Israel blocked the entry of goods and supplies into Gaza on March 2, following the end of the first phase of a January ceasefire deal with Hamas. It resumed attacks on Gaza on March 18.
With no food, no supplies, and no relief in sight, Gazans have been enduring a relentless fight for survival.
In response to mounting international condemnation, Israel has proposed that its military take over the distribution of aid - a move widely criticized by the international community.
Briefing a Security Council meeting on Tuesday, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher noted that the UN has met for over 12 times with the Israeli authorities regarding the latter's proposed aid distribution model, yet no solution had been found.
Danon, however, stated that no discussions have taken place in recent weeks regarding the issue.
"I don't know about that. Actually I listened to Mr. Fletcher's remarks at the Security Council the other day, and I can tell you that he visited Israel but he had no discussion about that fund because it was way back and in the last few weeks there was no dialogue about that. I would expect UN officials to engage when they want to speak about issues they know how to reach us, they know how to reach the U.S. mission. We are here to engage," he said.
"They got some information from the media, I assume. But I think they should look into that and to realize that if they want to be involved, that is the way to be involved," he added, reiterating that the UN has not reached out.
In response to Danon's denial, the United Nations reaffirmed its position, standing by the public statement released by Fletcher.
"I heard what he said, and we stand by what Mr. Fletcher has said," Farhan Haq, deputy spokesperson for UN Secretary-General noted later on the day, commenting on Danon's statement.
"Mr. Fletcher gave the details," he continued.
Israel envoy denies discussions with UN on enabling Gaza aid deliveries
