BEIJING, Nov. 17 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping Tuesday called on BRICS countries to keep people's welfare close to heart, pursue the vision of a community with a shared future for mankind, and make the world a better place for everyone through concrete actions.
Xi made the remarks in Beijing when addressing the 12th BRICS summit via video link.
At present, the world is caught between the most serious pandemic in the past century and momentous changes never seen in the last one hundred years, Xi said.
He also noted that the world economy is witnessing the worst recession since the Great Depression in the 1930s.
"Despite all this, we remain convinced that the theme of our times -- peace and development -- has not changed, and that the trend toward multipolarity and economic globalization cannot be turned around," Xi said.