Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva criticized the US dollar’s larger role in the world economy and lashed out at the IMF during an official visit to China on Thursday.
The veteran leftist, whose government recently announced a deal with Beijing to trade in their currencies — leaving the dollar as an intermediary — is seeking to boost ties with his country’s top trading partner in China and boost his To spread the message that “Brazil is back” a major player on the global stage.
“Why should every country be tied to the dollar for trade? … Who decided that the dollar would be the (world’s) currency?” by BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa).
“Why can’t a bank like the BRICS Bank have a currency to finance trade between Brazil and China, between Brazil and other BRICS countries? … Today, countries have to chase dollars to export , when they can export in their own currencies.” ,
Lula also had strong words for the International Monetary Fund, pointing to the IMF’s accusations that it imposed spending cuts on cash-strapped countries such as Brazil’s neighbor Argentina in exchange for bailout loans.
He said, “No bank should repress countries’ economies the way the IMF is doing with Argentina now, or the way they did with Brazil for a long time and with every third world country.” is,” he said.
“No leader can serve with a knife to his throat because (his country) is owed money.”
– ‘Brazil is back!’ ,
Lula, who took office in January, wants to reposition Brazil as a global mediator and deal broker, seeking friendlier ties across the board after four years of relative isolation from his far-right predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro. are doing.
He is due to meet Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping in Beijing on Friday and also met US President Joe Biden in February.
“Brazil is back!” Lula made the promise in Shanghai, where he arrived Wednesday night.
“The times when Brazil was absent from major world decisions are in the past. After an inexplicable absence, we are back on the international stage.”
The Ukraine war is expected to be one of the main topics on the agenda when Lula and Xi meet on Friday.
Despite concerns from Western countries that they are overly cozy with Russian President Vladimir Putin, both China and Brazil have positioned themselves as mediators in the conflict.
Both countries have refused to join Western countries in imposing sanctions on Russia for its aggression.
– Business Relations –
The Shanghai leg of Lula’s trip highlighted another key goal of the trip – deepening trade ties between the Asian giant and Latin America’s largest economy.
China is Brazil’s biggest export market, buying tens of billions of dollars worth of soybeans, beef and iron ore.
Under a currency deal announced in March, Brazil and China have named two banks – one in each country – to conduct their large-scale trade and financial transactions by directly exchanging yuan instead of dollars and vice versa. .
China has similar deals with Russia, Pakistan and many other countries.
Following Rousseff’s inauguration, Lula visited a research center run by Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei.
Huawei’s chair walked through an exhibition showcasing the company’s extensive presence in Brazil – unlike the United States, where companies are effectively barred from doing business with the firm.
Lula also met with the head of China’s biggest electric car maker BYD, which said in October it planned to set up a vehicle manufacturing plant in Bahia, northern Brazil, after Ford Motors closed its factory there.
The company is already making electric buses and cars in Brazil for the Latin American market.
Lula, who previously led Brazil from 2003 to 2010, has been seeking to smooth ties with China after relations deteriorated under Bolsonaro.
The 77-year-old president was initially scheduled to travel in late March but had to postpone it after contracting pneumonia.
He is traveling with a large delegation of about 40 high-level officials, including cabinet ministers, governors and members of Congress.
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(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed)