With the goal of preparing the trip of Jordan's King Abdullah II to Brazil, the Foreign Minister of Jordan, Salaheddin Al-Bashir, is making a trip to Brazil this week. He should meet in Brazilian capital BrasÀlia with president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and with Foreign Minister Celso Amorim.
On Wednesday, July 16, the minister should travel to São Paulo, where he has a visit scheduled to the headquarters of the Arab Brazilian Chamber of Commerce.
The main objective of the trip is to prepare the visit of the Jordan king, scheduled for October, the first of a Jordanian monarch to the country. "He (Al-Bashir) is going to speak about bilateral relations, the acceleration of the signing of agreements in several areas and especially about the visit of the king," said the ambassador of the Arab country to Brasília, Ramez Goussous.
According to Cláudio Nascimento, head of the Middle East Department at the Itamaraty, the Brazilian Foreign Office, agreements to be signed during the visit of the king to Brazil are being negotiated. The most advanced, according to him, is one in the area of tourism, whose objective is to expand the bilateral flow of tourism.
"We are also trying to make agreements in other areas to enhance the kings visit, so that it may be as broad as possible," said Nascimento.
Agreements are being negotiated in the areas of maritime transport, science and technology and agriculture. Ambassador Goussous believes that there is also interest in the signing of agreements in the economic area and in the energy field, among others. The Mercosur and Jordan are still negotiating a fixed tariff preference agreement.
According to Goussous, with Lula and Amorim, the Foreign Minister should also discuss the situation in the Middle East, especially the conflicts that threaten the region and are discussed worldwide. He is also going to participate in a dinner offered by the Council of Arab Ambassadors to Brazil.
Trade
At the Arab Brazilian Chamber, Al-Bashir is going to discuss the trade aspects of the king's visit to Brazil. According to the organization's president, Antonio Sarkis Jr., the monarch should come accompanied by a delegation of businessmen and the organization of activities in the area should count on the Chamber's participation. "The Chamber is a partner in this event and is going to collaborate organizing the commercial part of the visit," said Sarkis.
In this respect, during the minister's visit, Ibrahim Al Majali, the envoy of the Jordanian Investment Board (JIB), should be in São Paulo. He will not only meet with the Chamber board, but should also meet representatives of the Federation of Industries of the State of São Paulo (Fiesp), the Brazilian Export and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil) and the Commercial Promotion Department at the Itamaraty, among other organizations. The JIB plans to promote investment seminars during the monarch's visit.
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