There was an emotional handover of power in Brazil, from the country’s most popular president, to the country’s first ever woman president, euronews reports. Tens of thousands braved the rain in the capital Brasilia to wave goodbye to Lula da Silva and welcome his protégé Dilma Rousseff.
Posts Tagged ‘Brasilia’
UNESCO ratifies Kosovo document
August 4th, 2010 |
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The UNESCO World Heritage Committee ratified a document which contains Serbia’s statement on the importance of its medieval monuments located in Kosovo. The UNESCO committee met in Brasilia, Brazil.
‘PM was emotional when Tharoor offered to quit’
April 19th, 2010 |
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When Shashi Tharoor went to meet him and offered to quit Sunday afternoon, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh appeared emotional and told him he believed he was clean, but he had no choice in the face of an unrelenting opposition that was determined to embarrass the government and hold up important legislative business, sources said here.
“The [...]
India opposes sanctions against Iran at BRIC, IBSA summits
April 17th, 2010 |
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India opposed a drive by western countries to impose new sanctions against Iran at the recently concluded IBSA and BRIC summits here.
There was a free exchange of views on Iran, where the Indian prime minister opposed sanctions and advocated dialogue to resolve the Iranian issue, Commerce and Industry Minister Anand Sharma told journalists Saturday. Iran [...]
The BRICs: The trillion-dollar club
April 15th, 2010 |
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Brazil, Russia, India and China matter individually. But does it make sense to treat the BRICs—or any other combination of emerging powers—as a block?
IN ANY global gathering, the American president is usually seen, at a minimum, as primus inter pares: the one who can make or break the final bargain and select his favoured interlocutors. So in Copenhagen last December, as negotiations for a new climate-change treaty were entering their final hours, a hastily convened meeting between Barack Obama and China’s prime minister, Wen Jiabao, looked as if it would be the critical moment when a deal might be struck. But when the president turned up, he found not only Mr Wen but the heads of government of Brazil, South Africa and India. This was unexpected. The Americans even thought the Indians had already left the summit. What was conceived as a bilateral talk turned instead into a negotiation with an emerging-market block. As an additional sign that things were changing in the world, the president got a finger-wagging from one of Mr Wen’s hangers-on. But at least Mr Obama was in the room; Europeans were shut out while the emerging powers and America put the final touches to their deal.
This week the same developing countries are meeting again, in Brasilia. On April 15th Brazil, India and South Africa—rising powers that are also democracies—put their heads together. The next day South Africa will drop out and Russia and China will join the party, to create a meeting of the so-called BRICs. …
Manmohan arrives in Brazil for IBSA, BRIC summits
April 15th, 2010 |
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Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh arrived in the Brazilian capital Wednesday to attend two back-to-back multilateral summits that aim at greater cooperation among top emerging economies of the world.
Manmohan Singh was accorded a colourful ceremonial welcome at the Brasilia airbase. He was warmly received by Brazil’s Defence Minister Nelson Jobim.
He will participate in the IBSA [...]
Manmohan Singh to attend two summits in Brazilian capital
April 14th, 2010 |
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Heads of state and government from India, Brazil, South Africa, China and Russia will meet this week in the Brazilian capital for the fourth India-Brazil-South Africa (IBSA) and the Brazil, Russia, India, China (BRIC) summits here. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who attended the Nuclear Security Summit in Washington, will attend both the summits.
The fourth IBSA [...]
India, China working for practical solution to border issue: PM
April 14th, 2010 |
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Ahead of his meeting with Chinese President Hu Jintao in Brazil, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said India and China were working hard to find “pragmatic solution” to the border problem and were working closely on an array of global issues, including climate change.
“We have the border problem and that problem is to be resolved. [...]
PM leaves for US, Brazil
April 10th, 2010 |
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Prime Minister Manmohan Singh Saturday left for a week-long visit to the US and Brazil to meet President Barack Obama and Chinese President Hu Jintao and attend a summit on nuclear security.
The special aircraft carrying the prime minister and his delegation took off from the Palam air force station at 9.40 a.m.
In his departure statement [...]
Picking a fight
March 9th, 2010 |
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Brazil fires another salvo in its dispute with America over cotton subsidies
HOW serious is the decision by Brazil’s government, announced on Tuesday March 8th, to raise duties on a number of American-made imports? The increases are sizeable for goods such as cosmetics (tariffs will double, to 36%) and many household wares (tariffs will also double, to 40%). And the timing is significant: the news came as America’s commerce secretary, Gary Locke, was due to arrive in Brasilia to promote an export-promotion initiative in America’s 10th-largest export market.
Yet the decision is not entirely surprising, as it relates to a long-running trade dispute. Asked about the dispute at a press conference last week Hillary Clinton, the secretary of state, said “I feel like I have walked into a movie that has been going on for years”. Brazil complained to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) nearly eight years ago about America’s counter-cyclical subsidies to its cotton growers, which are designed to cushion them against fluctuations in the cotton price, and a programme guaranteeing loans for international buyers of American cotton. …
Clinton tells Brazil sanctions necessary for Iran
March 4th, 2010 |
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Hillary Clinton said in Brazil she doubts Iran will negotiate seriously about its nuclear program unless the UN SC approves new sanctions against it. The U.S. secretary of state held talks in Brasilia with Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula de Silva.
Uribe and Lula discuss base use
August 7th, 2009 |
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Colombian President Alvaro Uribe has received tacit support from Brazil for his plans to allow US troops to use Colombian military bases.
Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim said it considered the agreement to be a sovereign Colombian matter.
Peru also expressed support, while Chile and Paraguay said the accord was a matter for Colombia. Ecuador, Bolivia and Uruguay expressed disapproval.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has cut ties with Colombia over the plan.
Mr Chavez has said he fears the move amounts to preparation for an invasion of his country by US forces.
President Uribe has visited several of his South American neighbours over the past three days in a bid to calm fears over his decision to open seven military bases to US forces.
"We reiterated the agreement with the United States is something naturally for Colombia’s sovereignty"
Celso Amorim
Brazilian Foreign Minister
Washington wants to use Colombia as a regional hub for operations to counter drug-trafficking and terrorism.
The US has been forced to look for a new base for such operations after Ecuador refused to renew the lease on its Manta base, which the US military was using.
"We reiterated that the agreement with the United States, which is limited to Colombian territory, is something naturally for Colombia’s sovereignty," Brazil’s foreign minister said after Thursday’s talks.
But during his two-hour meeting with Mr Uribe, Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva said the matter could have been handled more transparently, according to Brazilian media.
The Brazilian leader is also said to have asked for guarantees that the actions of US troops would be restricted to Colombian territory.
The BBC’s Gary Duffy in Sao Paulo says concern has been expressed in Brazil about the proximity of US forces to the River Amazon, an issue always of great sensitivity to Brasilia.
Even US President Barack Obama’s National Security Adviser, James Jones, conceded on a visit to Brazil this week that a better job could have been done when it came to preparing the ground for the agreement, our correspondent adds.
During this week’s whirlwind tour of Latin America, Mr Uribe steered clear of Ecuador and Venezuela, both of which have tense relations with Bogota and Washington.
Mr Uribe has accused Ecuador and Venezuela’s leftist leaders of links with the rebel Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (Farc), who have been seeking to overthrow the Colombian governments for 45 years.
Colombia’s accord with the US is expected to be raised again when Ecuador hosts a regional summit on 10 August. Mr Uribe and his foreign minister do not plan to attend.
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
Israel sees Brazil help with Iran
July 23rd, 2009 |
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By Gary Duffy
BBC News, Sao Paulo
Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman says Brazil perhaps "more than other countries" can help convince Iran to suspend its nuclear programme.
Mr Lieberman is on a 10-day visit to Latin American partly to promote trade but also to try to counter the influence of Iran in the region.
He said Brazil traditionally had strong ties with Arab countries and Israel and could be a "good negotiator".
Mr Lieberman is also due to visit Colombia, Peru and Argentina.
Mr Lieberman is in Brazil, where he held what were described as "constructive talks" with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva in the capital, Brasilia.
Israeli diplomats had acknowledged that unease about Iranian influence in Latin America would be a major issue on this trip, and that Mr Lieberman would be keen to raise those concerns.
However while Israel appears uncomfortable with Brazil’s cordial relations with Iran, its foreign minister suggested this might also offer an opportunity.
"I think that Brazil more than other countries can try to convince Iranians to sop their nuclear programme and, of course, to convince the Palestinians to start direct talks," Mr Lieberman said.
However Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim indicated support for Iran’s goal of nuclear development for "exclusively non-military purposes" and within a "verifiable framework".
In what could be seen as a message for Israel he also spoke of the desire to see a Middle East free of nuclear weapons.
No detail was given about any potential role Brazil might play but there could soon be a chance to test the idea.
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad unexpectedly cancelled a visit to Brazil earlier this year, but is said to have promised it will be his first overseas trip after he is sworn in for a second term of office. </p
This article is from the BBC News website. © British Broadcasting Corporation, The BBC is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.
British waste lands in Brazilian waters
July 17th, 2009 |
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• Rubbish included syringes, nappies and condoms
• Transport of waste may have violated international treaty
Police in Brazil are investigating how 1,400 tonnes of British hazardous waste, including nappies, condoms and toilet seats, ended up rotting in three Brazilian ports.
The discovery prompted disgust and alarm that the South American country was being used as a dumping ground in violation of an international treaty on the movement of hazardous waste.
Authorities said they wanted Britain to take back the 65 containers. “We will ask for the repatriation of this garbage,” Roberto Messias, the head of the environment agency, told reporters. “Clearly, Brazil is not a big rubbish dump of the world.”
Five Brazilian companies which imported the containers between February and May have been fined. They said they thought they were receiving plastic for recycling.
The shipment, which reportedly originated in the Suffolk port of Felixstowe, the UK’s largest container port, ended up in the port of Santos near Sao Paulo, and two other ports in the state of Rio Grande do Sul. Instead of recyclable plastic the containers were found to have chemical toilet seats, computer fragments, batteries, syringes, old medicine, leftover food, condoms and nappies.
An additional 25 containers, also thought to be from the UK, were later found with hospital waste, including bags of blood. Brazilian pride was especially piqued by a collection of grubby toys with a note in Portugese saying they should be scrubbed and donated to poor children.
Brazilian police are investigating two UK companies which so far have not been named.
The British embassy in Brasilia said the UK was opposed to illegal trade of any kind and would seek to establish if the Basel convention on the movement of hazardous waste had been broken.
“Where any company is found to have contravened the strict controls on the export of waste as set out by the Basel convention, which is fully ratified by the UK, the UK authorities will not hesitate to take action.
“The UK takes a strong global lead on protection of the environment and the safeguarding of human health, and will do all it can to stamp out the illegal trade in waste.”
European companies seeking to bypass domestic regulations have traditionally used Africa as a dumping ground for hazardous waste, including sewage, contaminated oils and acids.
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