President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) defined the main topics he intends to discuss during the G20 Leaders’ Summit, in New Delhi, India, between the 9th and 10th of September.
In his speeches, he will defend that one of the greatest priorities of the modern world is the fight against all types of inequalities, including social, income and gender.
In addition, Lula will place great emphasis on the environment and the fight against climate change, according to the CNN .
In this chapter, he will again demand that rich countries honor the old promise, never fulfilled, to allocate at least US$ 100 billion per year to actions to protect nature in the developing world and will ask for more funding for the necessary transition of the planet to cleaner energy sources.
The president will also insist on a theme present in all his speeches abroad: the need for profound reforms in the global governance system, especially the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the United Nations (UN) and its Security Council .
Finally, Lula will use the G20 stage to highlight the conclusions of the recent Amazon Summit, held in Belém, Pará, between the heads of government of the countries that share the forest.
The Planalto Palace and Itamaraty know that the Amazon is one of the most important assets of Brazilian diplomacy and that the rich countries support the announced measures to protect the forest.
In addition, the president himself has stated several times that he considers the G20 the most important global diplomatic forum at the moment, since it brings together the 19 largest economies in the world plus the European Union.
Brazil at the helm of the G20
Brazil will assume the presidency of the G20 starting next year.
It will be third in a list of four major developing countries to lead the pack, after Indonesia and India, and ahead of South Africa’s presidency in 2025.
But the divergences between the groups is not good for the Brazilian government — which should adopt themes similar to those that Lula will present in New Delhi as the priorities of his presidency.
split G20
The agenda proposed by Lula will be echoed by many of the countries present at the New Delhi Summit, which are especially concerned with the issue of climate change and the environment.
However, the G20 is completely fractured – and is very unlikely to be able to reach consensus even on its final declaration.
The main reason for disagreements is the war in Ukraine, which opposes the rich countries of the West, on the one hand, and the alliance between Russia and China, on the other.
In addition, there are also divergences between demands defended by developing countries and the G7, the alliance of great developed democracies led by the United States.
The war has already provoked strong and heated discussions in the preparatory meetings for the summit, which involves delegates from all countries. Russians and Chinese oppose any statement condemning Moscow for the war.
The G7, for its part, defends exactly the opposite, demanding that practically all the documents of the summit, including, of course, the final declaration, condemn Russia, in the harshest terms, for the biggest conflict in Europe since the Second World War.
War and other issues directly oppose the two greatest powers in the world: the United States and China.
The White House reported that President Joe Biden wants to discuss several issues at the event.
At the top of the US list, of course, is the war in Ukraine.
According to White House press secretary Karine Jean Pierre, Biden wants to focus on the social impacts of the conflict in the developing world, in particular a potential food crisis and inflationary effects in poorer nations.
The strategy seeks support from developing nations, but many tend to be skeptical of the US position.
Many of the countries present did not even condemn the invasion in UN votes, preferring to abstain.
In the case of Brazil, which voted against the invasion, President Lula should maintain the position he adopted in recent summits, criticizing the war and remembering that the country defends the principle of territorial integrity of all nations. But avoiding explicit condemnations of the Russians.
Russian President Vladimir Putin telephoned on Tuesday (29) to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and informed him that he would not be going to New Delhi.
He will be represented by his Minister of Foreign Affairs, Serguei Lavrov – as happened last week during the BRICS Leaders Summit in South Africa.
But not even the absence of the Russian leader will ease the mood.
SEE ALSO: Lula: I am in favor of the expansion of the Brics, but with conditions
North American optics
The White House says Biden will also discuss climate change and the ability of multilateral development banks to better combat poverty.
In principle, it seems like an agenda similar to that of President Lula. But the two will debate in diametrically opposite positions.
The Brazilian leader will make demands for stronger funding and substantive changes in global governance.
Biden will not even commit to fulfilling the promise of $100 billion a year.
And he will say, at most, that small reforms in the IMF could help a lot – something very far from the position defended by Lula, who wants, for example, new actors like the Banco dos Brics leading the fight against poverty, without the orthodox demands on the economies developing countries traditionally required by the IMF.
Source: CNN Brasil
Bruce Belcher is a seasoned author with over 5 years of experience in world news. He writes for online news websites and provides in-depth analysis on the world stock market. Bruce is known for his insightful perspectives and commitment to keeping the public informed.
