São Paulo – The conference ‘Brazil and the Middle East: shaping new patterns of connections?’ will cover the possibilities of diplomatic and commercial cooperation between the two parties after the popular uprisings that begun in 2011 in the Arab countries called Arab Spring. The event is organized by the International Relations Institute (IRI, in the Portuguese acronym) of the University of São Paulo (USP) and is scheduled for October 19th and 20th. The meeting will be have Brazilian and foreign speakers.
“The main role that Brazil can assume [in relation to the countries of the Middle East] is its actions in the UN bodies, in the General Assembly and in the Human Rights commission, besides the sheltering of refugees and the shaping of public opinion”, assesses Arlene Clemesha, professor of Arab History and Culture at USP and one of the event’s organizers.
Among the speakers in the conference are Pedro Dallari, IRI’s director; Maria Hermínia Tavares de Almeida, former director and professor of International Relations at IRI; Hussein Kalout, specialist in Middle East and International Relations affairs and a member of the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs at Harvard University; Paulo Sérgio Pinheiro, president of the UN’s Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic; and Guilherme Casarões, professor of International Relations at Fundação Getulio Vargas and at the advertising and marketing at college Escola Superior de Propaganda e Marketing, among others.
The meeting will address the political situation of different Arab countries after the social uprisings. The panels’ topics are: Economic and Social Challenges of the Arab reforms and the Brazilian Experience; Developing civil society interactions; and Bilateral Relations and Multilateral Dynamics: in search of solutions for current crises.
According to Clemesha, it’s possible for Brazil to have an influence in the countries of the region, such as Syria, Libya and Tunisia. “I think that any position by Brazil carries an influence. Brazil is a global actor. Its declarations and agreements hold some sway”, she points out. For the historian, with Tunisia, for instance, it’s possible to maintain an agreement through academic or commercial agreements. “Tunisia is the only country [in the region] pointing to a transition”, she says. “For being a country where the transition is being carried on, it’s where the collaboration between the Brazilian and Tunisian civil societies is potentially more successful”.
According to the historian, the image that Brazil has in the Arab countries will also be discussed in the conference. “Brazil’s image is positive in the majority of the Arab countries”, she says.
Conference Brazil and the Middle East: shaping new patterns of connections?
October 19th and 20th, starting 9 AM
Place: International Relations Institute of USP
Avenida Professor Lúcio Martins Rodrigues, s/n travessas 4 e 5, São Paulo
Participation is open to the public in general, but the organization asks for a previous registration via the email eventos.iri@usp.br, leaving name and RG (Identity Card)
The full schedule is available at www.facebook.com/events/1000813279940809/
*Translated by Sérgio Kakitani
