In Argentina, Lula da Silva has meetings with dictators

On his first official international trip, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva scheduled meetings with former left-wing allies in Latin America.

Among them, the dictator of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro.

Lula da Silva landed in Argentina on Sunday the 22nd. The president will remain on Argentine soil until tomorrow. On the following day, he will carry out agendas in Uruguay.

In all, Lula da Silva should have five bilateral meetings.

On Tuesday the 24th, he will participate in the summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC).

Lula da Silva will formalize the return of Brazil to the bloc, abandoned by the government of Jair Bolsonaro, in 2019.

He will also have bilateral meetings.

One of them will be with the Venezuelan dictator. With Maduro, Venezuela’s relationship with Mercosur, a bloc from which the neighboring country was suspended in 2016, should be discussed, according to CNN.

In addition to meetings with Maduro, Lula da Silva is also expected to meet with the Cuban dictator, Miguel Díaz-Canel, and the vice president of Argentina, Cristina Kirchner.

Lula da Silva traveled to Argentina accompanied by six of his 37 ministers, among them, Fernando Haddad (Finance), Mauro Vieira (Itamaraty) and Márcio Macedo (General Secretariat of the Presidency).

Also completing the list are ministers Nísia Trindade (Health), Paulo Pimenta (Secretary of Social Communication) and Luciana Santos (Science and Technology), in addition to the first lady, Janja.

CELAC WAS CREATED BY SOCIALISTS IN 2010

The leftist organization was created by the then dictator of Venezuela, Hugo Chávez, with the participation of all socialist rulers in the region, including Lula da silva.

In 2019, the government of Jair Bolsonaro made official the departure of CELAC, which excluded the United States and Canada from its composition and included — without any public disapproval — the dictatorships of Cuba, Nicaragua and Venezuela itself.

In all, 33 countries are part of the organization.

LULA DA SILVA’S GOVERNMENT DECIDED TO REJOIN CELAC

In a note published on January 5, Itamaraty stated that the re-entry was informed to “extra-regional partners with whom CELAC maintains regular dialogue”, such as the European Union, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (Asean), the African Union, China and India.

The Ministry also informed that Brazil participated directly in the creation of CELAC, by convening and hosting, in 2008, in Costa do Sauípe, Bahia, the first edition of the summit.

Also according to the note, the leftist organization has topics such as “food and energy security, health, social inclusion, sustainable development, digital transformation and infrastructure for integration” on its agenda.

“Brazil’s return to the Latin American community of States is an indispensable step towards the recomposition of our diplomatic heritage and for the country’s full reinsertion into the international community”, concluded the Itamaraty.

With information from Revista Oeste