Brazil’s Foreign Minister, Mauro Vieira, said on Monday (12) that there is no controversy around the photo in which President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (PT) appears alongside leaders of authoritarian regimes during his visit to Moscow. According to Vieira, Lula’s participation was institutional and reinforced the diplomatic and commercial ties between Brazil and Russia. The information is from the portal Poder360.
Vieira explained that the Brazilian president was in the Russian capital to participate in the celebrations of Soviet victory in World War II, a historical event of international relevance. In the minister’s assessment, the result of the trip was positive, and there was no diplomatic embarrassment.
(9), accompanied by the first lady Janja Lula da Silva and former President Dilma Rousseff (PT), who currently chairs the New Development Bank (NBD), known as the “Banco dos Brics”. The president watched the Military Parade in Red Square alongside 19 other international leaders, many of them heads of state from countries with authoritarian governments.
Among them stakes Ibrahim Traoré, by Burkina Faso, Umro Sissoco Embaló, Guinea-Bissau, Abdel Fattah El-Sisi, from Egypt, and Emmerson Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe.
Lula’s image alongside these leaders generated criticism of the opposition. Senator Flávio Bolsonaro (PL-RJ), the son of former President Jair Bolsonaro, classified as “unbelievable” the fact that Lula attended an event alongside autocrats.
Flavio’s criticism contrasts with his father’s history, Jair Bolsonaro, who during his term maintained close relations with authoritarian leaders, such as Russian President Vladimir Putin, Hungary Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, and Saudi Arabian prince Mohammed Bin Salman. Bolsonaro has praised these leaders on several occasions, calling Orban “brother” and Mohammed Bin Salman “almost brother”,
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For the Brazilian government, Lula’s visit to Moscow was an opportunity to strengthen the dialogue with Russia, a member country of the BRICS and Brazil’s strategic partner. The trip also reflects the foreign policy of neutrality adopted by Lula amid the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, with Brazil maintaining dialogue with both the West and with Moscow allies.
