“Extremely successful”, says Lula about meetings of Celac-UE leaders

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva assessed as “extremely successful” the meetings between Latin American and European leaders, which took place this week during the 3rd Summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (Celac) and the European Union (EU), in Brussels, Belgium. “Of all the ones I participated with the European Union, this was the most successful”, said the president, highlighting the European bloc’s unprecedented interest in establishing partnerships with Latin American countries. “The fact that 60 countries participated unequivocally demonstrated Europe’s interest in turning its eyes to Latin America. Rarely have I seen so much political and economic interest from the countries of the European Union towards Latin America. Possibly due to the dispute between the US and China; possibly by China’s investment in Africa and Latin America; possibly by the new silk road; possibly by war [entre Rússia e Ucrânia]”, said the president at a press conference, shortly before flying back to Brazil, with a stopover in Cape Verde. According to Lula, the “concrete data” is that the EU has shown “a lot” of interest in making investments again, to the point of announcing €45 billion in investments on the continent. “And when it comes to the question of the bioeconomy and the change in the energy matrix, Brazil is unbeatable and taken very seriously. Let’s not throw this opportunity away, ”he said. “The part of the world that can produce the green hydrogen that Europe needs is precisely our dear South America. I leave here happy because we achieved a very great goal, which was to maturely re-establish negotiations with the European Union.” Mercosur-EU Regarding Mercosur (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay), Lula said that there is interest, on the part of the bloc, in an eventual process of reindustrialization, but with “requirement”. “Our demand is to be exporters of manufactured goods and things with more added value, in order to generate more qualified jobs. That is why we do not give up government purchases, which are an instrument of internal development adopted by countries like the USA and European countries”, he added, remembering that, in previous governments, this strategy ended up favoring the Brazilian shipbuilding industry. The president defended that something similar be done with the health industry, through the Unified Health System (SUS). like the SUS. Therefore, we have to take advantage of a program of this magnitude and the purchasing potential that the SUS has to develop a health industry internally in Brazil”, he argued. Lula reiterated criticism of the conditions of the European bloc for a rapprochement with Mercosur, citing the additional letter presented by the EU at the end of June, at the Summit for the New Global Financial Pact, in Paris, France. “It was an aggressive letter, threatening us with punishment if we didn’t meet certain environmental requirements. We replied that two strategic partners do not argue with threats, but with proposals”. According to the president, Brazil prepared a basic text with a response, which will be discussed with the other countries of the South American bloc. Lula assesses that the EU “will calmly agree” with Mercosur’s response and said that the text of the additional letter “was possibly written by someone thinking that, by applying pressure, we would give in”. “But we will not give in because, first, few people in the world can speak [mais] of clean clean energy or preservation than us. We have a historic and campaign commitment that we will, by 2030, end deforestation in the Amazon. This is a commitment from us, from the Brazilian government”, he added when demanding that the other parties act to fulfill the commitment of donating the US$ 100 billion for the maintenance of the forests. Enlargement of the text closed at 10:28 am

Agência Brasil