Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva insisted on the need to consolidate the political union between Latin American and African countries in order for them to exert greater influence on the global stage.
“It is this political relationship that will give us influence when we want to change the UN (United Nations) and that can help alter the correlation of forces within the WTO (World Trade Organization),” the President remarked at the opening of the 16th Continental Congress of the International Confederation of Free Union Organizations, in Brasilia.
The President said that this is the reason for his being the Brazilian president who has paid the most visits to Latin American and African countries.
According to Lula, the change in the relationship with neighboring countries was responsible for removing the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) from the Brazilian government’s list of discussion topics.
“It has been two years since the FTAA was last discussed in Brazil,” he affirmed. For the President, the Latin American countries must establish complementary policies to end internal disputes and the excessive valorization of what is produced in the developed countries.
Lula observed that 2006 will be an election year in various Latin American countries and that this will provide an opportunity to effectuate the necessary changes.
Agência Brasil