The European Union will establish a strategic partnership with
Brazil next month to make the Latin American country the seventh to
enjoy the special ties with the 25-nation bloc, an EU envoy said
here on Tuesday.
Joao Pacheco, the EU ambassador to Brazil, told a press
conference that EU foreign ministers will meet on June 18-19 in
Luxemburg to make a decision on the partnership with Brazil.
An EU-Brazil summit will follow on July 4 in the Portuguese
capital Lisbon. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will
be invited as a special guest to a biofuel forum set for July 5-6
in Brussels, according to the ambassador.
He said Brazil is a regional power with an increasing role to
play on the international arena.
The EU-Brazil partnership will further bilateral cooperation in
efforts to push ahead the UN reform, check global warming,
safeguard world peace and develop substitute fuel, said the
ambassador.
The recognition of the importance of Brazil is a reflection of
political pragmatism, he said, adding that the EU hopes to boost
ties with the Southern Common Market (Mercosur) by forging a
strategic partnership with Brazil.
Mercosur, a trade bloc made up of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay,
Uruguay and Venezuela, rejects the EU's agricultural subsidies
while demanding greater concessions for its products to enter
Europe. The two sides have yet to strike a deal after years of
negotiation.
The EU has set up strategic partnership with the United States,
Canada, China, Russia, India and South Africa. It has a total
investment of €80 billion (US$107.464 billion) in Brazil. Up to 22
percent of Brazilian exports are destined for Europe.
(Xinhua News Agency May 30, 2007)
