UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher receives an interview with Xinhua in Beijing, capital of China, on April 25, 2025. Countries can only achieve broad-based economic development by forging partnerships rooted in trust and dialogue -- a fact exemplified by China, Fletcher said. (Xinhua/Zhang Yuwei)

BEIJING, April 26 (Xinhua) -- Countries can only achieve broad-based economic development by forging partnerships rooted in trust and dialogue -- a fact exemplified by China, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher said.

Fletcher, who visited China this week, told Xinhua on Friday that such cooperation is especially critical now, as the global humanitarian system faces immense strain amid ongoing conflicts in Gaza, Ukraine and Sudan.

"And partnerships require us all to listen, as well as to talk," he said, adding that China's approach to international engagement reflects that principle.

"It's not seeking to impose its view on others. It's seeking to build that dialogue and trust," Fletcher said. "And that's the spirit that I think we should all be cooperating in."

He added that the initiatives China proposed around peace and security, global development and cultural cooperation closely align with the UN's core mission of peacemaking, humanitarian efforts and global security.

"There is a huge synergy there, and a huge potential as well for more partnership," he said. "I think there are immense amounts of practical work we can do together, for example, the green humanitarian movement, preparing for climate disasters, and practical support in countries, where I want to see much more day-to-day cooperation between our diplomats."

Fletcher said the concept of "a community with a shared future for mankind" is another key idea that highlights global solidarity and "the world coming together, not pulling apart."

Such concepts have created "partnerships that we really need if we're to meet the challenges ahead of us, including climate change," he said.

Fletcher highlighted the Mombasa-Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway, a flagship project of China-Kenya Belt and Road cooperation. He recalled driving between the two cities while living in Kenya back in the late 1990s. "It was a very bumpy road, and it took us a long time to get from Nairobi to Mombasa," he said. "So to see those transport links shrinking the time and the distance between cities, I think, has a huge impact on the global economy and on global development."

"The fact that the infrastructure is improving means I can move faster, but more importantly, it means we can move humanitarian supplies much faster. We can get our convoys moving with food and medicine and shelter to reach those communities who need them so badly," he added.

As a proponent of multilateralism, Fletcher said he's "very worried about that potential impact" of the United States' retreat from international cooperation, aid cuts and sweeping tariffs.

"I don't believe that countries can really build extensive economic development by retreating from the world," he said, adding that the tariffs risk an impact on the economies of the countries where humanitarian needs are already demanding.

"I'm very worried about that potential impact," he said. "There's also a risk that they have an impact on the economies of many of our partners and donors whose support is so essential for that humanitarian work."

"So clearly we want dialogue. We want solidarity. We want more international cooperation, and I hope that dialogue and engagement can resolve some of these differences around trade and tariffs, and help us to work together rather than separately," he noted.

Meanwhile, the funding shortfall caused by the U.S. aid cuts "is a big short-term challenge for us," Fletcher said.

"Because of those cuts, we are closing massive numbers of programs, and we're saying goodbye to fantastic colleagues across the sector. And it's heartbreaking to lose those programs, and to see the impact on the people we serve. And what we now need to see is other countries stepping forward," he said.

He highlighted China's "real leadership role" in Myanmar's earthquake rescue operations. "I was in Myanmar and saw the Chinese rescue teams going in 24 hours a day after the earthquake to pull survivors from the rubble," he said.

"In all those situations, you feel the despair, but you also feel hope, because it's in those moments when people are under such great pressure that they look out for each other, that they respond," he said. "And to see the preparations that they have developed, and the expertise of the Chinese first responders, I thought the world needs this. They need that experience and expertise."

"We need that support from China, and that leadership from China," he said. ■

UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher receives an interview with Xinhua in Beijing, capital of China, on April 25, 2025. Countries can only achieve broad-based economic development by forging partnerships rooted in trust and dialogue -- a fact exemplified by China, Fletcher said. (Xinhua/Zhang Yuwei)

UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher receives an interview with Xinhua in Beijing, capital of China, on April 25, 2025. Countries can only achieve broad-based economic development by forging partnerships rooted in trust and dialogue -- a fact exemplified by China, Fletcher said. (Xinhua/Zhang Yuwei)

UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher receives an interview with Xinhua in Beijing, capital of China, on April 25, 2025. Countries can only achieve broad-based economic development by forging partnerships rooted in trust and dialogue -- a fact exemplified by China, Fletcher said. (Xinhua/Zhang Yuwei)

UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher receives an interview with Xinhua in Beijing, capital of China, on April 25, 2025. Countries can only achieve broad-based economic development by forging partnerships rooted in trust and dialogue -- a fact exemplified by China, Fletcher said. (Xinhua/Zhang Yuwei)