(Brasilia) Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will meet his American counterpart Joe Biden in Washington on February 10, the press department of the Brazilian presidency announced on Thursday.
Took office on 1er January, the left-wing president announced his desire to reconnect with many countries with which his far-right predecessor Jair Bolsonaro had tense relations, the United States in the lead.
Bolsonaro had waited 38 days before acknowledging Biden’s 2020 victory over Donald Trump, of whom he was a fervent admirer. Relations between Brazil and the United States were very cold after Biden came to power.
Lula will visit the United States from February 9 to 11, the press department of the Brazilian presidency said.
He responds to an invitation launched by Joe Biden, which the White House reported on January 9, the day after the assault and ransacking of places of power in Brasilia by Bolsonarist extremists.
After these events which recalled the assault on the Capitol in Washington in January 2021 by Trump loyalists, Joe Biden had expressed, during a telephone conversation, “the unwavering support of the United States for Brazilian democracy”, had indicated the White House.
“Democracy is the only possibility for us to build a strong nation. That’s why I’m going to talk to Biden to see how he handles” the far right, President Lula wrote on Twitter Wednesday evening.
The February meeting should also allow “in-depth exchanges” on subjects of common concern, such as climate change, economic development, peace and security, added the White House.
Lula pledged to work for Brazil’s return to the international stage during his third presidential term. “Everyone wants to talk with Brazil,” he told TV Globo this week, promising to “rebuild” Brasilia’s ties with major foreign capitals.
The 77-year-old icon of the Brazilian left thus undertakes his first trip abroad to Argentina on Sunday, where he will also participate in a regional summit, that of Celac, bringing together 33 countries from Latin America and the Caribbean.