Jakarta, April 30 -- Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Arrmanatha Nasir called for strengthening solidarity and trade among middle-income countries at the High-Level Conference of Middle-Income Countries in Manila, the Philippines, on Tuesday.

"Amid a global situation full of fragmentation, middle-income countries (MICs) must not be adrift and lead to a more just, inclusive, and sustainable world," he said at the meeting, according to a statement issued on Wednesday.

He highlighted the changing global situation, marked by increasingly intense competition between major powers, rising protectionism and trade wars, and a weakening multilateral system, as well as efforts by several parties to dismantle it.

"If we fail to stop this decline...