Photo taken on Aug. 26, 2017 shows the scenery of Xiamen International Conference and Exhibition Center in Xiamen, a scenic city in southeast China's Fujian Province. The 9th BRICS summit will be held in Xiamen from Sept. 3 to 5, 2017. (Xinhua/Jiang Kehong)

Mexico's President Enrique Pena Nieto will attend the BRICS Summit in Xiamen, South China's Fujian Province, which begins on Sunday, with Chinese experts saying that the summit has become more attractive to emerging economics like Mexico, especially as the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) faces resistance.Pena Nieto will arrive in China this weekend to discuss trade and investments, with Chinese President Xi Jinping meeting him before Pena Nieto participates in the BRICS Summit on Monday and Tuesday, Reuters cited a Mexican foreign ministry statement as saying."The BRICS Summit is more attractive to emerging economies like Mexico, because the summit advocates a new kind of globalization - fairer, more comprehensive and more righteous. It emphasizes connectivity and offers the convenience for the launching of free trade zones, which suits the economic development interests of developing countries," Lu Jing, a professor at the China Foreign Affairs University's Institute of International Relations, told the Global Times on Friday.US President Donald Trump's protectionist policy as well as his threat to scrap NAFTA has likewise pushed Mexico to search for opportunities in other regions, Lu said.Pena Nieto's visit comes as US, Mexican and Canadian negotiators meet from Friday to Tuesday in Mexico City to revamp the 23-year-old NAFTA, Reuters reported.Trump renewed his threat to scrap NAFTA on August 27, which he blamed for killing jobs and exacerbating the US deficit, and criticized trading partners Canada and Mexico."Mexico's role in NAFTA has diminished as well since Trump announced his plan to build a wall on the US-Mexico border," Chen Fengying, an expert at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, told the Global Times on Friday.Chen said that Mexico's summit attendance is also meant to explore the "BRICS Plus" model, which is aimed at involving more countries under BRICS and establishing a new platform for South-South cooperation.China has invited the leaders of Egypt, Guinea, Mexico, Tajikistan and Thailand to the summit, Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Wednesday."Involving more countries under BRICS will help raise the voice of developing countries, encourage regional and global cooperation, expand shared interests and generate more solutions to bilateral and multilateral friction," Chen said."BRICS nations - Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa - have become an influential force in improving the world economy, promoting changes in the global order and safeguarding international peace and stability. Cooperation among BRICS nations has entered another decade, which will be crucial in building on the past and opening up the future," Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a press briefing on Friday.Hua said that considering the complicated international situation, BRICS nations, as the representatives of emerging economies and developing countries, have the responsibility and capability of playing an active and constructive role in dealing with global challenges.China would like to make efforts with other countries to make the cooperation bigger and stronger to build a solid foundation for launching more multilateral ties and effective cooperative mechanisms, Hua said.Hua added that China appreciates the support and trust offered by world leaders, including Russian President Vladimir Putin and Brazilian President Michel Temer.Putin said Russia highly values the multifaceted cooperation with BRICS for a fair world order and development conditions, in a byline article published on Friday.Putin said he appreciates China's significant contribution as this year's chair of the organization, "which has allowed BRICS countries as a group to move forward in all key areas of our partnership, including politics, the economy and culture."Brazil-China ties are of great strategic importance not only for the two countries but also for the rest of the world, Temer said in an article published Thursday on Chinese media.