Madagascar to play demonstrative role in China-Africa cooperation: president

Madagascar's President Andry Nirina Rajoelina has called for more agricultural cooperation with China, saying the two countries will set an example for China-Africa cooperation.

In an interview with the China Central Television (CCTV) after attending the 2024 Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in September, Rajoelina shared his plan on expanding cooperation with China.

"Madagascar is Africa's largest island. When you browse the world map and take a closer look at Africa, Madagascar, as the largest island in southwestern Africa, cannot be overlooked. Its location is of great strategic significance. We urgently need to promote multiple cooperation projects, especially in the fields of agriculture and agricultural transition. Madagascar will play a demonstrative role in China-Africa cooperation," Rajoelina said.

As the world's fourth largest island, Madagascar is one of the world's prime biodiversity hotspots and approximately 90 percent of its plant and animal species are endemic, including its lemurs and baobab trees.

China and Madagascar established diplomatic ties in 1972. On September 6 this year, Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Rajoelina in Beijing. The two leaders announced the elevation of bilateral ties to a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership.

Madagascar was one of the first African countries to sign a Belt and Road cooperation document with China and one of the founding countries of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

Madagascar to play demonstrative role in China-Africa cooperation: president

The Mexican Foreign Ministry said Friday that border between Mexico and the United States can not be changed by the decision of a state-level government, and the demarcation of boundary between the two countries must follow standards established by international treaties.

The Texas General Land Office, a U.S. state agency led by Commissioner Dawn Buckingham, has declared nine islands in the Rio Grande, known as the Rio Bravo in Mexico, property of the state of Texas.

In response, the ministry said that under the 1970 Mexico-U.S. Boundary Treaty, the international boundary in the river follows the center line of the normal channel and that line determines sovereignty over the land on either side, regardless of who previously held sovereignty over it.

The International Boundary and Water Commission is the body authorized by the two governments to carry out the treaty and has the power to determine on which side of the boundary each island lies, the ministry said, noting that no state-level government body has the authority to make such determinations.

It stressed that under the treaty, neither side may build works that the International Boundary and Water Commission finds could alter or obstruct the normal flow of the river.

The ministry said Mexico will closely monitor any actions in the area and reiterated that it will abide by the treaty governing the two countries' shared border and continue to pursue dialogue through established mechanisms.

Border with U.S. can not be changed by state-level government: Mexico