China supports the establishment of an effective global partnership, Foreign Minister Li Zhaoxing said Wednesday.

 

The Security Council held, on the sidelines of general debate of the UN General Assembly, a ministerial-level thematic debate on cooperation between the UN and regional organizations in maintaining international peace and security.

 

Addressing the foreign ministers of the council members and leaders of regional organizations who attended the meeting, Li said that it is important to complement efforts and enhance coordination between the UN and regional organizations.

 

"We support establishing the basic principles guiding this partnership and ensuring the leading role of the UN," he declared, adding "full play should be given to the respective strengths of the two sides in carrying out cooperation."

 

Li further pointed out that it is important to advance result-oriented cooperation, saying the UN may carry out cooperation with regional organizations in confidence-building measures, conflict prevention, crisis management and peacekeeping.

 

"Such cooperation should be flexible and diversified in form, and should not be confined to a particular model or mechanism," he argued.

 

Meanwhile, the foreign minister also stressed the importance of strengthening capacity building.

 

"Enhancing crisis response capacity at the regional level is the best way to prevent or end conflicts, and the regional organizations of developing countries are playing an increasingly important role in this respect," he said.

 

The UN should put more emphasis on its cooperation with these organizations and provide them with assistance and policy incentives in terms of institutional building, information exchange and funding, Li said.

 

(Xinhua News Agency September 21, 2006)