Lula and Macron defend expanding military cooperation for peace – 03/27/2024 – World

The presidents of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT), and France, Emmanuel Macron, defended this Wednesday (27), in Itaguaí (RJ), the expansion of military cooperation between the two countries so that, together, work to maintain world peace.

Macron gave a harsh critical speech to the most recent conflicts on the planet, but without mentioning any specific ones. He stated that Brazil and France must strengthen their military power so as not to be “lackeys of other” countries.

“We reject the world being a prisoner of conflict between two great powers. We want to defend our sovereignty, and with it international law throughout the world. We believe in peace because it builds balance. This requires us to be strong,” said Macron.

The speech took place at the Itaguaí Naval Complex (RJ) during the baptism ceremony and launching into the sea of ​​the Tonelero submarine, the third of the four conventional submarines with diesel-electric propulsion planned in the Prosub (Submarine Development Program).

Prosub is part of a strategic partnership agreement signed between France and Brazil in 2008. Estimated at R$40 billion in current values, it also envisages the construction of a conventional nuclear-powered submarine, named “Álvaro Alberto”.

“The great peaceful powers, such as France and Brazil, must recognize that, in this increasingly organized world, we have to be able to speak of firmness and strength. We are the powers that do not want to be the lackeys of others We have to know how to credibly defend the international order”, stated the French president.

Lula defended the expansion of international military cooperation between the two countries to help Brazil “conquer greater strategic autonomy in the face of the multiple challenges that humanity faces in this 21st century.”

“President Macron and I agreed to expand this effort with the Bilateral Committee on Armaments, to promote greater balance in our trade in defense products,” said Lula.

“It’s a partnership that will allow two important countries, each on a continent, to prepare so that we can live with this diversity without worrying about any type of war because we are defenders of peace.”

The president also said that it is necessary to “worry about the peace of mind of 203 million Brazilians who live in this country.” “Today we know that there is a very serious problem of animosity against the democratic process in this country and on planet Earth.”

The visit to the naval complex is part of Macron’s three-day visit schedule to the country. It will pass, in total, through four cities, ending this Thursday (28), in Brasília.

On Monday (26), Lula and Macron announced in Belém an investment plan in bioeconomy for the Amazon. The French president leaves Rio this afternoon to attend commitments in São Paulo.