The fifth China-Brazil Foreign Ministerial-Level Comprehensive Strategic Dialogue in Beijing on Monday is a reminder that the future international order may depend more on how major developing countries align their interests and actions.

The Chinese Foreign Ministry’s readout of the strategic dialogue between Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira indicates that China and Brazil are seeking to build a partnership that extends well beyond bilateral diplomacy.

The relationship has evolved steadily over the past three decades. China and Brazil established a strategic partnership in 1993, upgraded ties to a comprehensive strategic partnership in 2012, and jointly elevated relations to a China-Brazil community with a shared future for a more just world and a more sustainable planet in 2024.

International institutions face mounting strain as conflicts, trade disputes and geopolitical fragmentation have intensified demands for stability. In an era when hegemony, unilateralism and protectionism are once again on the rise in various parts of the world, the rationale for deeper coordination among major developing countries has never been more compelling.

Vieira said that Brazil looks forward to consolidating strategic mutual trust with China, deepening practical cooperation, cementing public support for bilateral ties and achieving common prosperity, expressing Brazil’s readiness to work with China to enhance multilateral coordination, jointly advance the reform of the global governance system, uphold the authority of the United Nations and promote international fairness and justice.

The foundation for the development of relations in that direction is solid. China is Brazil’s largest trading partner, while Brazil is China’s ninth-largest trading partner. Bilateral trade reached nearly $188 billion in 2025. Chinese exports to Brazil range from machinery, telecommunications equipment and chemical products to transportation equipment and steel. Brazilian exports to China include iron ore, soybeans, crude oil and pulp. Such complementarities provide an important degree of stability for global supply chains.

The signing in 2023 of a memorandum establishing renminbi clearing arrangements in Brazil and the 2024 agreement aligning Belt and Road cooperation with Brazil’s Growth Acceleration Program, New Industry Plan, Ecological Transformation Plan and South American Integration Routes Plan point to an increasingly deeper economic partnership featuring development and strategic alignment.

Yet perhaps the most underappreciated dimension of China-Brazil relations lies in people-to-people ties. Exchanges in education, tourism, media, youth affairs and sub-national cooperation continue to expand, and the two governments are preparing for the 2026 China-Brazil Cultural Year.

Sport offers a particularly vivid example. For more than three decades, Brazilian footballers have played for Chinese clubs. Chinese football supporters cannot forget that several key members of China’s historic 2002 FIFA World Cup squad emerged from a training program in Brazil during the 1990s. Many later became coaches, passing a Brazilian influence to younger generations. When the 2026 World Cup kicks off, many in China will be rooting for Brazil.

Such connections matter because durable international partnerships require public support, not merely governmental agreement.

The broader significance of the dialogue on Monday lies in its recognition that reforming global governance can no longer be postponed. Wang urged the two countries to jointly promote the development of a more just and equitable global governance system.

If major Global South countries such as China and Brazil can maintain strategic mutual trust, deepen practical cooperation and strengthen coordination through mechanisms including the United Nations and BRICS, they will help inject a measure of predictability into an increasingly volatile world. In an age increasingly defined by uncertainty in some parts of the world, that may be one of the most valuable public goods any major-country engagement can provide.