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São Paulo – Brazil’s minister of Foreign Affairs, Aloysio Nunes, met this Sunday (4), in Amman, with Jordan’s King Abdullah II and the country’s prime minister and Defense minister, Hani Mulki, and Foreign minister, Ayman Safadi. According to Brazil’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Itamaraty), Nunes underscored as an opportunity for closer business ties the Brazil-Arab Countries Economic Forum, to be held by the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce on April 2 in São Paulo.
When talking about bilateral cooperation, FM Safadi said that, regarding business, the government’s role is to prepare the ground for the private sector to come in. In this sense, the Brazilian FM mentioned the forum as the channel for the strengthening of relations between entrepreneurs from both countries. The event is co-organized by the Union of Arab Chambers and has the support of the Arab League.
According to Itamaraty, in the meeting with King Abdullah II, the interest in the promotion of a technical cooperation program between Jordan and Brazil was raised, especially in experience sharing on agriculture in dry land, which is done successfully in Brazil in the semi-arid Northeast region. Nunes said that Brazil could welcome technical mission from Jordan and share knowledge in this area.
A cooperation agreement was signed by Nunes and Safadi, which creates a legal framework for the technical exchange between the two countries. They also discussed cooperation regarding the agriculture and defense sectors, and regional issues, such as the war in Syria and the conflict between Israel and Palestine. In the latter, both countries support a two-state solution.
With the prime minister, the Brazilian FM discussed the resume of negotiations on a free trade agreement between Mercosur and Jordan. The bloc and the country started talks on an agreement over ten years ago, but it was never signed. However, since last year, the Jordanian government has been supporting the restart of negotiations.
Lebanon
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This Monday, Nunes had an official schedule in Lebanon, where he was welcomed by prime minister Saad Hariri. According to Itamaraty, one of the topics discussed was the signing of a cooperation agreement in the defense sector, and the prime minister said that he has instructed the government to speed up negotiations in this regard.
A free trade agreement with Mercosur was also discussed with Lebanese authorities, such as the Foreign minister Gebran Bassil. Brazil has one of the world’s largest communities of Lebanese descent and Bassil is also responsible for the relations between the Arab country and its expats.
Nunes also visited the corvette Barroso, of Brazil’s Navy, which head the Maritime Task Force of the United Nations Interim Force (Unifil) in Lebanon. The task force’s goal is to support Lebanon in the fight against the entrance of weapons in the country. This week, the corvette Barroso will be replaced by frigate Independência as the fleet’s flagship.
At the end of the day, the minister visited the Brazil-Lebanon Cultural Center, a body of the Brazilian embassy in Beirut.
This Tuesday (6), Nunes will be welcomed by Lebanon’s president, Michel Aoun.
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
