Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi on Friday met with UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Barham Salih, who is in China for the 2026 Global Governance Forum (Xiongan).
Wang, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee, said the China-proposed Global Governance Initiative (GGI) offers guidance for the international community to join hands in addressing the refugee challenge.
China attaches great importance to the status and role of UNHCR and stands ready to cooperate more closely with it, Wang added.
He said China believes peace is of primary importance in ending the refugee crisis. China does its utmost to advance the settlement of global hotspot issues and takes an active part in UN peacekeeping operations, Wang added.
China holds that development is the foundation for improving the conditions of refugees, Wang said, adding that China has provided a large amount of humanitarian assistance and support to developing countries, especially the least developed countries, creating conditions for addressing the refugee issue at its root.
Wang said improving refugee governance hinges on international cooperation. China welcomes and supports UNHCR in playing a leading role in global refugee governance and is willing to jointly explore effective ways to solve the problems of major refugee-producing countries with UNHCR, he added.
China stands ready to take the GGI as a guide, open up new prospects for cooperation with UNHCR and work together to make greater contributions to the international humanitarian cause, Wang said.
For his part, Salih thanked China for its long-term and firm support for the cause of the United Nations and the work of UNHCR, saying that China has long played an important role in peacekeeping, international mediation and promoting development.
UNHCR looks forward to building a close partnership with China and jointly addressing the refugee challenge under the framework of the GGI, Salih said.