On August 19, Brazilian President Lula da Silva visited the Aramar Nuclear Industrial Center (CINA), the strategic technological center run by the Brazilian Navy, where both Brazil’s nationally-developed uranium enrichment program and the development of a prototype nuclear reactor for submarine propulsion are located. Adjacent to the CINA, the Brazilian Multipurpose Reactor (RMB) is being constructed, which will quadruple national radioisotope production. Lula was accompanied by many top officials, among them his Defense, Mines and Energy, and Science, Technology and Innovation Ministers, and the Commander of the Navy.
The high-profile visit, coming just weeks before the decisive Oct. 4 presidential election in which Lula is the leading candidate, had a message. “In a world ravaged by geopolitical conflicts, sovereignty in the areas of defense and technology is essential,” President Lula wrote before arriving. He reiterated afterwards: “A large country, the size of Brazil, must have the capacity to develop cutting-edge technology and carry out strategic projects to ensure its sovereignty.” The President made clear development is as much a part of sovereignty as defense. The development of a nuclear-powered submarine “is not just a Navy engineering project. It is a project for Brazil, where professionals “who can build our country’s future” will be trained, national knowledge developed, and skilled jobs created, he wrote.
Matters of national security in today’s toxic international environment are very much on the Lula government’s mind. Two days earlier, President Lula’s Special Advisor Celsom Amorim was interviewed on the state of U.S.-Brazilian relations by O Globo’s Valor Econômico. Amorim reported that the government is “very concerned” about the Trump administration’s military intentions in South America.
The ongoing trade dispute with the U.S. is less of a concern, he explained; while Brazil would prefer the tariff dispute to be resolved through negotiations, if necessary, Brazil can always take its trade elsewhere. “We want to have good relations with the Americans; we always have,” he said.
