São Paulo – Representatives of governments and companies in Brazil and the Emirates discussed over the weekend, in Abu Dhabi, the negotiation of a series of agreements among both countries, during a Bilateral Mixed Committee.
According to the CEO at the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce, Michel Alaby, who participated in the event, treaties in the areas of Defence, to avoid dual taxation, promotion and protection of investment, as well as expansion of the agreement that the two countries have in the area of civil aviation.
Other themes of the meeting, according to Alaby, were expansion of the validity of visas for Brazilians in the Emirates, creation of a mechanism for bilateral enquiries regarding sovereign funds, return to negotiations of the free trade agreement between the Mercosur and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), greater Brazilian company access to the markets of the region, cooperation in tourism, nuclear energy and culture and identification of new opportunities for reciprocal investment.
The delegation from the Emirates was led by the assistant minister of Economic Affairs of the country’s Foreign Ministry, Khalid Ghanim Al Gaith. The Brazilian delegation was headed by ambassador Paulo Cordeiro, undersecretary general for the Middle East and Africa at Brazil’s Foreign Ministry. Representatives of organisations like the Bank of Brazil, Embraer, Vale and construction companies Andrade Gutierrez, Odebrecht, Queiroz Galvão, OAS and Engeprot, as well as Mubadala, Emirates Steel and one of the oil companies of the Arab country.
The diplomats of the Emirates informed that they are going to invite Brazil’s president Dilma Rousseff and vice president Michel Temer to the International Water Summit, to take place from January 15 to 17, 2013, in Abu Dhabi. The meeting should discuss sustainable management of water in arid regions.
*Tradução de Mark Ament
