MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Lula announces German Chancellor due in Brazil this month

Lula and Scholz are also expected to discuss bilateral trade and the growth of the extreme right

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula Da Silva said Thursday in an interview with GloboNews that German Chancellor Olaf Scholz should arrive in Brasilia on Jan. 30 together with members of the European country's cabinet and a group of executives representing large German companies, Agencia Brasil reported.

A key Brazilian trade partner, Germany has been showing interest in a political rapprochement with Brazil, with the possibility of allocating more financial resources to fund environmental preservation projects, especially in the Amazon.

When attending Lula's Jan. 1 inauguration, German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier announced the release of € 35 million to the Amazon Fund, as compensation for the reduction of deforestation in the Amazon biome in 2017.

Created in 2008, the fund receives donations from international institutions and governments to finance actions to prevent and combat deforestation in the Legal Amazon. The resources are used to finance projects for reducing deforestation and monitoring the biome. For political reasons, the mechanism was paralyzed during the Jair Bolsonaro administration.

In November 2022, the Federal Supreme Court (STF) ordered the Brazilian government to reactivate the Amazon Fund within 60 days. The measure has already been fulfilled during the current administration. On his first day at the helm of the Executive Branch, Lula signed Decree 11,368, authorizing the National Bank for Economic and Social Development (BNDES) to resume raising financial donations for the Amazon Fund.

Besides the environmental area, Lula and Scholz are also expected to discuss bilateral trade and the growth of the extreme right in several countries. During the GloboNews interview, Lula said he wanted to talk to the German chancellor about how the far right was growing in Europe and in the world.

On Jan. 9, Scholz condemned the storming and depredation of the Planalto Palace, the National Congress, and the Supreme Court building (STF) the day before in Brasilia.

“Terrible images come to us from Brazil. The violent attacks against democratic institutions are an attack on democracy that cannot be tolerated. We stand in deep solidarity with President Lula and the Brazilian people,” wrote the German Social Democrat, who, in addition to Brazil, is expected to visit other countries in the region.

(Source: Agencia Brasil)