President Luiz Inácio Lula Da Silva arrived in Beijing today, following his May 8-10 visit in Moscow to participate in the celebrations of the 80th anniversary of the defeat of fascism. (Brazil participated on the Allies’ side during World War II.) In China, he will meet with President Xi Jinping in a state visit on May 12, and will participate in the May 13 China-CELAC Summit (CELAC being the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States).
Brazil chairs the BRICS group this year. Russia and China, like Brazil, were founding members of the now-expanded BRICS. In a pre-trip interview with Chinese journalists on May 5, Lula explained that people need to be educated about what the BRICS group is all about. We participate in it to signal to the world what we want to see, he said, expressing the concept of the “one humanity” on which the BRICS is premised.
“The world is not Brazil’s; it is not China’s; it is not the Americans’. The world is made up of almost 9 billion human beings who inhabit the planet and who have the right to live decently and well,” he emphasized. “The world needs peace, patience, investment and development … to ensure that the people of the planet live in the dignified conditions which are their right…. Brazil can do a lot alone, but Brazil, together with China, with India, with South Africa and with the countries which make up the BRICS, is much stronger. We can do much more.”
After the Victory Day celebrations, President Lula and President Vladimir Putin held a bilateral meeting accompanied by ministers and advisors, and the congressional and business leaders who also accompanied Lula. Both mentioned in their public opening statements to the meeting that Lula had not visited Moscow for 15 years, but they know each other well from their cooperation in the BRICS.
Lula was blunt about the state of the world. “We are living in very challenging times. Much of what we hoped would follow the Second World War, such as the strengthening of multilateralism, an enhanced role for the United Nations, and the expansion of free trade, was seen as essential to safeguarding lasting peace. Sadly, that vision has not yet fully materialized, and today, true peace remains elusive,” he told President Putin. “The recent decisions announced by the President of the United States, particularly in the area of tariff policy, affecting all countries, undermine the principles of free trade, weaken multilateralism, and also disregard the sovereignty and dignity of independent nations. These are values we must not forget.
“The purpose of my visit today is to advance the development of our strategic partnership,” he stated. “Brazil sees Russia as an important partner—politically, culturally, economically, and in the fields of science and technology. Likewise, Russia has many shared interests in Brazil. We are two great nations, located on opposite sides of the globe. As part of the Global South, we now have an opportunity to strengthen our economic cooperation….”
The areas raised for increased bilateral cooperation ranged from military matters to space exploration, science, economic development, education, and energy.
