President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva took advantage of the stopover of the presidential plane in Cape Verde, for refueling, and, in a quick meeting with the Cape Verdean president, José Maria Neves, reiterated the Brazilian interest in resuming partnerships and good relations with the countries of the African continent. The quick visit took place this Wednesday (19) during Lula’s return to Brazil, after participating in the 3rd Summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (Celac) and the European Union (EU) in Brussels, capital of Belgium. In a speech, Lula lamented Brazil’s distancing in recent years from the African continent, but guaranteed that this relationship will be recovered in the name of the historical links between Brazil and Africa. “Deep gratitude” “I want to recover the relationship with the African continent because we Brazilians are formed by the African people. Our culture, color and size are the result of miscegenation between Indians, blacks and Europeans. We are deeply grateful to the African continent for everything that was produced during 350 years of slavery in our country”, said Lula, emphasizing that Brazil intends to compensate the continent that is the cradle of humanity. According to the president, some of the “payment methods” planned by Brazil – in return for the numerous contributions made by Africans forced to go to Brazil during slavery times – involve sharing technologies; professional training of specialists focused on the needs identified in the continent; and aid for industrialization and agriculture in Africa. “If we hadn’t had a denialist government, Brazil could have produced a vaccine against covid-19 and helped the African continent. Unfortunately, we had a mismanagement that did not fulfill what is essential, which is to take care of the human being. But, with my return to the Presidency, we want to recover the good and productive relationship we had”, he added. New embassies Lula anticipated that he will travel to African countries later this year and in 2024. “We are going to open embassies in countries where Brazil does not have embassies, and hold many meetings with various African specialists to define what Brazil can help the African continent the most”, he added. In a tone of thanks for the visit, the president of Cape Verde celebrated “Brazil’s return to the world”. “Brazil is a great country, and its power on the globe must be commensurate with its size. President Lula has brought this greatness to Brazil, and has placed himself in the world at the height of the challenges that the world is facing at this moment”, said the Cape Verdean. According to José Maria Neves, the world order is in a “transfiguration process” and, therefore, “we need visionary leaders, transformers and catalysts of this new moment”, he said referring to the Brazilian president. “We are pleased with Brazil’s contribution to [ações nos países] from the south and to have a more equal world, where everyone has much more opportunities to live with dignity”, he concluded.
Agência Brasil
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