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President Goria Arroyo arrived in Brazil on Monday for the first leg
of her four-day state visit aimed at strengthening bilateral
relations between the Philippines and Brazil.
President Arroyo’s state visit to Brazil is
expected to deepen further 49 years of diplomatic and bilateral
cooperation between the two countries. They established diplomatic
ties in 1960.
In her departure statement last week before she
left for a working visit to Japan and state visit to Brazil, the
President expressed hope that her visit will “provide impetus for
enhanced relations with Brazil, the largest economy in Latin America
and an emerging major global player.”
She said her mission to Brazil, it being one of
the four new economic giants (the other three being Russia, India
and China) to whom the world looks up today to stimulate economic
recovery, “represents the full breadth of our nation’s interests
in the world.”
“Brazil is a developing nation that has burst
onto the international scene the last decade. Brazil has become a
voice for the special challenges of a developing nation as well as
an innovator in biofuels. Brazil also faces many of the same
challenges experienced by the Philippines, so developing a closer
relationship with this South American powerhouse affords our two
nations a chance to learn from each other’s experiences,” the
President added.
Mrs. Arroyo said that she also hopes to
establish greater alliances in bio-fuel production and agri-business
during her visit.
“I am confident we will return with new
alliances that will benefit both our public and private sectors and
support our efforts to promote food and fuel self-sufficiency,”
the President added.
President’s itinerary
Today, she will visit what is touted to be the
biggest Filipino investment in Brazil—the Tecon Suape, S.A. , the
Brazilian subsidiary of Filipino company International Container
Terminal Services, Inc. (ICTSI).
The President’s next stop is the capital city
of Brazil—Brasilia—where she will be rolled out the red carpet
for making history as the first sitting Philippine President to
visit the Federal Republic of Brazil upon the invitation of Brazil
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.
She said that she would discuss with the
Brazilian President “ways and means to enhance our bilateral
cooperation and people-to-people linkages.”
During the visit, it is expected that Brazil and
the Philippines will seal agreements in the agriculture and
bio-energy and on development of stronger and better linkages
between the Philippines and Brazilian business communities.
Mrs. Arroyo’s last stop will be the city of
Rio de Janeiro, the capital city of Brazil from 1763 to 1822, famous
for its natural settings, carnival celebrations, samba and tourist
beaches, to meet Brazilian investors and invite them to look into
opportunities that the Philippines could offer them.
The President will fly back to Manila from Rio
de Janeiro on June 25.
Brazil is now the Philippines’ largest trade
partner in that region and the 25th globally. The Department of
Foreign Affairs said that trade balance has always been in favor of
Brazil because of Philippine importation of iron ore.
-- Angelo S. Samonte
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