The BRICS foreign affairs ministers welcomed China's incoming BRICS chairpersonship in 2017 and expressed confidence that intra-BRICS cooperation will be further strengthened, at a regular meeting on Tuesday on the sidelines of the 71st session of the United Nations General Assembly at UN headquarters in New York.

The ministers welcomed the fruitful discussion by BRICS leaders at their informal meeting on the sidelines of the G20 Hangzhou Summit, according to a statement released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa are the BRICS member nations.

They acknowledged the significant outcomes of the G20 Summit, and called for their full implementation, including in the areas of sustainable development goals, climate change, and on innovation and structural reform as drivers of future economic growth.

The G20 Summit, hosted for the first time by China in early September, has, also for the first time, included sustainable development in its agenda.

At Tuesday's meeting, the ministers called for "collective action" to boost world economic growth, macroeconomic policy coordination and improving global economic governance.

Poverty eradication has been reaffirmed as the greatest global challenge, and the ministers committed to continue to work toward the full implementation of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.

They called upon the international community, especially the developed countries, to fulfill their commitments and provide strong support for developing countries. In this regard they recalled the G20 Action Plan on the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and G20 Initiative on Supporting Industrialization in Africa and LDCs.

The ministers expressed their concern over continued conflicts in several regions that undermine stability and security and provide fertile grounds for terrorist activities, causing refugee and migration waves.