Brazilian President Lula da Silva and Prime Minister António Costa signed 13 cooperation treaties between the two countries this afternoon. From Defense to Education, through Culture or Health, the aim is to strengthen relations and deepen cooperation between Portugal and Brazil.
At the XIII Luso-Brazilian summit (which has not been held since 2016), the two leaders first met behind closed doors and then in plenary session with some ministers from their respective countries.
Ultimately, in statements to the press, both sides emphasized the importance of these agreements. And, both Lula and Costa, point out that these agreements “are a turn of the page”, as is the Camões Prize, which will be awarded to Chico Buarque on Monday and which relates to 2019, but has not been given to the musician so far.
In his speech, Prime Minister António Costa referred that “this new desire for cooperation will be signaled with the Economic Forum in Matosinhos [que acontece segunda-feira]where it will also be possible to fly on the first Embraer KC390 aircraft delivered to the Portuguese Air Force”. the prime minister also praised the areas of geology and energy, in which Portuguese companies – such as GALP and EDP – invest in Brazil. For example, in the case of geology, António Costa revealed that EDP has already invested “5.7 billion in energy projects” in the country.
Lula, in turn, praised “the affection with which the delegation was received and the affection with which the ministers treat each other”. “You can imagine the irresponsibility of those who ran the country in recent years, when Brazil became an isolated country”, he said. Lula admitted to feeling “at home in Portugal” and also regretted, in a joking tone, still not having had the opportunity to eat… cod, something he hopes will be done in the coming days will change. “I’m leaving here happy, cheerful.”
“We came back to restore the country and all the social inclusion policies. Everything we built in 13 years was destroyed in four years. The country was practically abandoned,” he criticized, alluding to the recent past of Brazil and the government of Jair Bolsonaro.
Therefore, by signing these treaties (including understanding mechanisms, protocols and agreements), Lula left a message: “Brazil is back.”
Source: DN
