Blinken: First visit to Brazil as Secretary of State Reproduction/RECORD 02/20/2024
US Secretary of State Antony Blinken arrived in Brazil on Tuesday evening (20) for a meeting with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), scheduled for this Wednesday (21). The North American's agenda also includes taking part in G20 meetings, where the world's most important economies come together.
In this first visit to Brazil as secretary of state, Blinken will discuss bilateral and global issues with Lula, highlighting U.S. support for Brazil's G20 presidency and the partnership between the two countries on labor rights and energy transition.
After engagements in Brasília and Rio de Janeiro, Blinken will travel to Argentina, where he will meet with President Javier Milei. Issues related to sustainable economic growth, democracy, human rights and trade will be addressed that benefit both countries.
Founded in the 1990s, the G20 brings together the world's major economies, responsible for more than 80% of the global economy, to discuss economic, political and social initiatives at annual meetings.
The US State Department disagrees with Lula's comments
US State Department spokesman Mathew Miller stated this Tuesday (20) that the United States disagrees with Lula's comment, which compared the war against Hamas terrorists to the Jewish Holocaust. According to Miller, Blinken will inform Lula of this position at the meeting this Wednesday (21).
“Of course we do not agree with this comment [de Lula]. We have made it very clear that we do not believe that genocide has taken place in Gaza. We want the conflict to end as quickly as possible. “We want to see a sustained increase in humanitarian aid to the innocent civilians in Gaza, but we do not agree with these comments,” he said.
Lula's statement was made during a press conference last Sunday (18) after the President's participation in the 37th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the African Union in Addis Ababa, capital of Ethiopia.
“What is happening to the Palestinian people in Gaza has never happened at any other time in history. In fact, it existed. When Hitler decided to kill the Jews,” explained the then PT member.
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