In Chile, Lula defends peace in Venezuela and calls for dialog between political forces

Brasil de Fato

On Monday (5), at a press conference at the Palacio de la Moneda in Santiago, the presidents of Brazil and Chile made statements about the situation in Venezuela following the presidential elections on July 28, which saw the reelection of current president Nicolás Maduro and the opposition’s non-recognition of the results. 

Gabriel Boric, the Chilean president, made a brief statement and did not go into the merits of the Venezuelan elections. “Particularly about Venezuela, esteemed president, I thank you and your delegation, above all, for your affection, your experience and trajectory, to share [your knowledge with us], to learn from your concern for the most dispossessed, for the integration of our peoples, to build a democratic and progressive left. And – always – that human rights are respected everywhere,” said the Chilean president. 

The President of Brazil, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (Workers’ Party), talked about respecting people’s sovereignty and dialog to resolve the differences between the political sectors vying for power in Venezuela. 

“I also explained the initiatives I have undertaken with Presidents Gustavo Petro [Colombia] and López Obrador [Mexico] regarding the Venezuelan political process. Respect for tolerance and popular sovereignty drives us to defend the transparency of results. The commitment to peace drives us to call the parties to dialog and promote understanding between the Venezuelan government and its opposition,” he said. 

Lula stressed the need for thoughtful stances to prevent committing historical injustices and failing to defend democracy. 

“Today, while President Boric was guiding me through the Hall of Democracy and Memory and showing me the recording of Salvador Allende’s last speech, I regretted that Brazil has in its history the sad stain of having supported the Chilean dictatorship,” he said.

Lula travelled to Chile for a two-day official visit. On Monday morning (5), he was received by Boric. In the early afternoon, agreements, memorandums of understanding and joint declarations were signed, as well as the exchange of decorations between the two heads of state. 

Other topics

In his statement to the press, Boric highlighted the reciprocal friendship between Brazil and Chile and announced that the Andean country will be part of the Global Alliance Against Hunger, a proposal made by Brazil during its presidency of the G20 to guarantee food security for the peoples of the world. “What could be better than Brazil, especially with Lula, telling us about the experience they have had in their country against hunger and poverty? We know that we can work together,” he said.

Lula stressed the need for a joint effort to combat the climate crisis and for coordinated action to tackle international organized crime, which threatens the security of all countries in the region. The Brazilian president highlighted the various partnerships between the two countries in tourism, science and technology, trade and regional integration.

The Brazilian head of state invited the Chilean president to join the meeting of democratic leaders against extremism, organized with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in New York. The event will take place in the context of the United Nations General Assembly in September. Lula also criticized Brazilian diplomacy under the previous government. “Brazil has come out of the diplomatic blackout it underwent from 2018 to 2022,” he said. 

Agenda

At the meeting, around 20 bilateral agreements and protocols of understanding were signed on various topics, such as a memorandum of understanding for technical cooperation in agriculture and one between the two countries’ human rights ministries on guaranteeing the rights of LGBTQIA+ people. In addition, another 13 cooperation agreements were signed in agriculture, health, science and innovation, reducing inequalities, food security, energy, among others. 

The presidents also attended the closing of the Brazil-Chile Business Forum, organized by Itamaraty – the Brazilian Ministry of Foreign Affairs – with ApexBrasil and the Chilean trade promotion agency ProChile. The activity included representatives from more than 400 companies from both countries. Lula will also meet the presidents of the Chamber of Deputies, the Senate and the Supreme Court of Chile, as well as the mayor of Santiago.

According to Itamaraty, Brazil is the Latin American country that invests the most in Chile and is the Andean country’s third largest trading partner, while Chile is the sixth largest market for Brazilian exports. In 2023, Brazil-Chile trade exchange reached US$ 12.3 billion.

On Tuesday (6), before returning to Brazil, President Lula took part in the inauguration of the cornerstone of Chile’s National Space Center (CEN, in Spanish). 

Friends, but with different opinions

In May 2023, during a summit of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (Celac) with the European Union in Brasilia, Presidents Lula and Boric publicly expressed their disagreements for the first time. 

The Chilean president criticized the position of Latin American countries about the war in Ukraine and demanded that political leaders be more open in condemning Russia for the operation in its European neighbor. Brazil has made neutral statements about the conflict, condemning the violence but emphasizing the need to build peace with all the actors involved in the war. 

At a press conference during the meeting, Lula said Venezuela was the victim of an “anti-democracy and authoritarian” narrative campaign, which Boric criticized. At the time, the Chilean president said that the alleged violation of human rights by Nicolás Maduro’s government “is not a narrative construction; that’s a reality“. 

In response, the Brazilian president said Boric was an “eager and hasty young man”. “I was once in Boric’s hurry,” said Lula. “It may have been Boric’s first EU meeting with Latin America. He’s a bit more anxious than the others. That’s all,” said the Brazilian president.

At Monday’s press conference, Lula defended countries’ diversity of opinions and political culture. “Each country has its own culture, interests and political nuances. We can’t want the same thing for everybody. We are not the same; we are different,” said the president.