Xi says China will always firmly support Venezuela in safeguarding sovereignty, national dignity, social stability

Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Friday that China and Venezuela are good partners of mutual trust seeking common development, and China will always firmly support Venezuela in safeguarding sovereignty, national dignity and social stability.

Xi made the remarks while meeting with Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro in Moscow on the sidelines of the celebrations marking the 80th anniversary of the victory in the Soviet Union's Great Patriotic War.

During the meeting, Xi said China and Venezuela have forged an ironclad friendship amid the changing international situation.

Since the establishment of the all-weather strategic partnership between China and Venezuela in 2023, the two sides have been actively engaged in exchanges across all fields and at all levels, Xi said, noting that the bilateral trade volume is continuing to rise, new progress is being made in investment cooperation and in people-to-people and cultural exchanges, and the bilateral friendship is taking deeper root in the hearts of the two peoples.

China has always viewed and developed relations with Venezuela from a strategic height and long-term perspective, and will, as always, firmly support Venezuela in safeguarding its sovereignty, national dignity, and social stability, said Xi.

He said China stands ready to strengthen experience sharing on national governance with Venezuela, continuously deepen practical cooperation across various fields, and push China-Venezuela relations to reach new heights so as to bring greater benefits to the people of both countries.

China is also ready to work with Venezuela and other Latin American countries to firmly safeguard the international system with the United Nations at its core and the international order based on international law, and push for sustained progress in building a China-Latin America community with a shared future, Xi said.

Maduro, for his part, called China a great friend of Venezuela and expressed gratitude to the Chinese side for always supporting his country in safeguarding national sovereignty and achieving economic and social development.

He said Venezuela looks forward to enhancing the all-weather strategic partnership with China and strengthening cooperation in areas such as trade, energy, agriculture, science and technology, and education, so as to bring more tangible benefits to the two peoples.

Maduro hailed the concept of building a community with a shared future for mankind put forward by President Xi as helping to open up bright prospects for world peace and development.

Venezuela is willing to step up coordination and cooperation with China, uphold multilateralism, safeguard international fairness and justice, and protect the common interests of the international community, Maduro said.

Xi says China will always firmly support Venezuela in safeguarding sovereignty, national dignity, social stability

Xi says China will always firmly support Venezuela in safeguarding sovereignty, national dignity, social stability

Xi says China will always firmly support Venezuela in safeguarding sovereignty, national dignity, social stability

Xi says China will always firmly support Venezuela in safeguarding sovereignty, national dignity, social stability

Geoeconomic confrontation is the leading short-term global threat in 2026, the World Economic Forum (WEF) warned in its Global Risks Report 2026 released on Wednesday ahead of its annual meeting in Davos, Switzerland.

The report ranks geoeconomic confrontation as the top risk for 2026, followed by interstate conflict, extreme weather, societal polarization, and misinformation and disinformation. It also identifies geoeconomic confrontation as the most severe risk over the next two years.

"I think if there is to be one key takeaway from the report, it's that we are entering an age of competition and this new competitive order is then shaping current global risks, but it is also shaping and to some extent hindering our ability to actually cope with them. That's really the key takeaway. If we take a look at, the number one risk both for 2026 and two years out, it's dual economic confrontation. But then if we look at the risks 10 years out. It's really the climate and environment related risks. All of these things require global cooperation and that's where we're seeing a big backsliding in this new age of competition," said Saadia Zahidi, managing director of the WEF.

Economic risks showed the largest increase in the two-year outlook, with concerns over economic downturns, inflation, rising debt and potential asset bubbles intensifying amid geoeconomic tensions, the report said.

Environmental risks remain the most severe overall, led by extreme weather, biodiversity loss and critical changes to Earth systems. The report noted that three-quarters of respondents expect a turbulent environmental outlook.

Risks related to adverse outcomes of artificial intelligence rose sharply, climbing from 30th in the two-year horizon to fifth in the 10-year outlook, reflecting concerns over impacts on labor markets, society and security.

The 21st edition of the report draws on views from more than 1,300 experts, policymakers and industry leaders.

The WEF's annual meeting will be held in Davos from Jan 19 to 23 and draw nearly 3,000 guests from more than 130 countries and regions to participate.

"So overall, we are starting to see this shift away from what have traditionally been the ways in which people have been able to cooperate. Now, that is not to say that any of this is a foregone conclusion. And I think that's a really important message around the risks report. None of this is set in stone. All of this is in the hands of leaders. Whether they choose to cooperate and invest in resilience or whether they do not. So that's really what we'll be focused on next week in Davos bringing leaders together under this overall theme of 'a spirit of dialogue' and trying to reestablish relationships, cooperation and trust. That's the fundamental," said Zahidi.

WEF warns of rising geoeconomic risks in 2026