São Paulo – The president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, made statements this Wednesday (17) in Doha praising the development of the Arab countries he visited on his mission to the Gulf. Speaking to the press, after riding a motorcycle in the capital of Qatar, Bolsonaro said he had seen progress and development in the countries, and they are increasingly confident about Brazil. The president visited the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, and Qatar.
“They want to invest in Brazil, we have infrastructure there, ports, highways, railways, airports, we have the issue of defense that is very important for exchange, they have a lot to offer us, and we have a lot to offer them,” Bolsonaro told the journalists. Asked about the meeting with the emir of Qatar, Tamim bin Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani (pictured above), he said the meeting was exceptional, as were the others he had on the trip.
Qatar’s official news agency, Qatar News Agency (QNA), reported Jair Bolsonaro and the emir spoke at the meeting on ways to develop bilateral Brazil–Qatar relations, especially in the areas of investment, economy, defense, energy, and sports, and exchanged views on several topics of common interest to the two countries.
The government of Qatar offered a motorcycle tour to Bolsonaro, who traveled through Doha to reach the Lusail Stadium, which will host games of the 2022 FIFA World Cup. Bolsonaro told the press he did not see any graffiti or dirt on the ground during the motorcycle ride. At the stadium, he met with the president of the International Football Federation (FIFA), Gianni Infantino, and the secretary-general of the World Cup in Qatar, Hassan al-Thawadi, with whom he spoke about holding the football World Cup every two years, among other topics.
Qatar is a country of just 2.8 million people, but it has one of the highest per capita incomes in the world. The peninsular nation has significant oil reserves and the third-largest natural gas reserve on the planet, occupying the position of the biggest exporter of liquefied gas. Bilateral trade between Qatar and Brazil amounted to USD 774 million last year. This was the second visit by Brazilian president Bolsonaro to the country. The first occurred in 2019.
Translated by Elúsio Brasileiro
