« The visiting Ahmadinejad Carnival of Latin America and the Caribbean
Ahmadinejad goes to Brazil: 15 Minutes on Latin America »

Lula {hearts} A’jad

LulaAjad

Makes me wonder how much money is actually changing hands between those two:

Lula urges Iran dialogue, backs nuclear plan

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva urged his Iranian counterpart on Monday to engage in dialogue on nuclear non-proliferation but backed Iran’s right to develop a peaceful nuclear program.

Ignoring critics who fear closer ties with Iran could dent Brazil’s ambitions on the global diplomatic stage, Lula met with Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in Brasilia on the first leg of the Iranian leader’s South American tour, which also includes stops in Bolivia and Venezuela.

Brazil President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva – whom US President Barack Obama called ‘the most popular politician on earth’ – hosted Iran President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad today. It is the first visit by an Iranian president. Let’s talk money:

But in Brazil, the Iranian leader will get a reprieve from Western threats of sanctions. With Lula, Ahmadinejad – and his entourage of businessmen – will discuss opportunities to increase and diversify commerce as well as boost cooperation in nanotechnology, biotechnology, agriculture, and energy, according Brazil’s Foreign Ministry. An Iranian deputy foreign minister said that Tehran hopes to increase trade with Brazil from $2 billion to $15 billion in the field of petrochemicals, agriculture, and medicine, according to the Los Angeles Times.

But Ahmadinejad’s looking for more than trade:

Here’s Ahmadinejad’s Brazilian TV interview (in Portuguese), where he said,

“The world needs a new economic order. Iran and Brazil have independent positions in relation to the international situation. … The two can work together to help create a new international order.”

Simon Peres says Brazil can help curb Iran. That remains to be seen.

Tags: ,

This entry was posted on Monday, November 23rd, 2009 at 8:39 pm and is filed under Brazil, Iran, Lula. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

5 Responses to “Lula {hearts} A’jad”

  1. Tweets that mention Fausta’s Blog » Blog Archive » Lula {hearts} A’jad -- Topsy.com Says:
    November 23rd, 2009 at 8:58 pm

    [...] This post was mentioned on Twitter by Fausta, Fausta. Fausta said: Lula {hearts} A’jad: Makes me wonder how much money is actually changing hands between those two: Lula urges Iran… http://bit.ly/5Z0lPv [...]

  2. Around Town … « Jason Poblete Says:
    November 24th, 2009 at 6:23 am

    [...] Blog pens an item on Brazil’s ongoing relationship with the other state sponsor of terrorism.  Lula da [...]

  3. foutsc Says:
    November 24th, 2009 at 9:38 am

    Hmmm… You’re suspicion about money being involved is probably right. I’m disappointed. I’ve always seen Lula as the typical outgoing Latin American Leftist. He hugged George Bush, remember.

    I have been friends with many leftists down south for years. They typically don’t let politics get in the way of a good friendship, even if some of them suspected I was a CIA agent (I’m not!).

    To think it’s all about the money for Lula is a little disappointing…

  4. Fausta Says:
    November 24th, 2009 at 10:49 am

    Foutsc,
    Not all about the money. There’s also power, too.

  5. foutsc Says:
    November 24th, 2009 at 2:22 pm

    “Not all about the money. There’s also power, too.”

    … Oh, Yeah… Some things are cross-cultural.