The proposal for a meeting between President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) and the far-right Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was made two weeks ago, according to government sources, but the Prime Minister did not initially respond to the proposal.
Sources say that the president was pragmatic and as soon as Pope Francis invited him to the Vatican, the Brazilian government proposed meetings with President Sergio Mattarella and the Prime Minister.
The meeting between Lula and Meloni will take place this Wednesday (21), at 12 pm [horário de Brasilia]at Chigi Palace.
When the president landed in Rome, on Tuesday afternoon (20), there was still no confirmation of the meeting, which only arrived at night.
Despite the political divergences, the Itamaraty assesses that the prime minister has led a pragmatic government. Meloni supports Ukraine’s entry into the European Union, but opposes the supply of arms to Ukraine.
Lula has also been expressing opposition to sending more weapons to the Ukrainians, as he believes that this contributes to prolonging the war.
In addition to the conflict in Eastern Europe, the conversation between Lula and Meloni should deal with the relationship between Brazil and Italy.
The Italian government defends the advancement of the agreement between Mercosur and the European Union. Lula has also said that he is in favor of advancing in meetings with European leaders, but behind the scenes sources claim that there is great resistance on the part of the president and Celso Amorim, the president’s special advisor for international affairs.
The Brazilian government fears that the entry of European products with reduced taxes in Brazil will harm the industry and Lula’s reindustrialization project.
Italy is now Brazil’s 15th main trading partner. There is also a proximity between the countries due to the fact that 30 million Italians live on Brazilian soil and 30 thousand Brazilians live in Italy.
Source: CNN Brasil
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