São Paulo – The Brazilian minister of Foreign Relations, Antonio Patriota, will pay his first visit, as minister, to an Arab country. He will go to Doha, Qatar, on Wednesday (9th) and attend meetings with local authorities.
Patriota will be received by the emir, sheikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani, as well as by the prime minister and foreign minister, sheikh Hamad Bin Jassem Bin Jaber al Thani. He will also give an interview to the Al Jazeera TV channel, which is headquartered in Doha.
According to information supplied by the Brazilian foreign ministry (Itamaraty), the visit `will be part of a series of high-level meetings between the two countries.
"The Brazil-Qatar relations, which have vast potential for diversification, is in turn a part of the dialogue that Brazil maintains with several relevant Middle Eastern players, as well as of the constant exchange of experiences among developing countries," according to the statement issued by the Itamaraty.
The ministry also points out that trade between Brazil and Qatar has grown by approximately 1,300% from 2003 (the first year of the Lula administration) and 2010, from US$ 37 million to US$ 514 million. In January and February, Brazilian exports to Qatar grew by 175% to reach US$ 76 million.
*Translated by Gabriel Pomerancblum
