June 10, 2007
India-Brazil Ties Transformed
after Lula's Visit: Envoy By Manish
Chand
New Delhi
India and Brazil have emerged as "major voice of moderation" in the
international scene with the two-trillion dollar economies
transforming their strategic ties across diverse areas, says India's
Ambassador to Brazil Hardeep Singh Puri.
"Both are trillion-dollar economies, both are large developing
countries with multi-cultural societies and constitute major voice
of moderation," Puri told IANS in an interview here days after
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva's visit to India.
Lula ended his three-day visit to New Delhi Tuesday that saw an
all-encompassing transformation of ties between the two economic
powerhouses of Asia and Latin America.
This transformation was reflected in the Red Fort Declaration signed
Monday that seeks to provide a "solid economic underpinning" to
their growing strategic ties and outlines an ambitious agenda for
increased cooperation on global issues like UN Security Council
reforms, global trade talks and climate change.
"The Red Fort Declaration is a transformative document," said Puri.
"It is Brazil-India cooperation in IBSA comprising India, Brazil and
South Africa that made the establishment of G-20 possible. To say
that G-20 is an important component in global trade negotiations
would be an understatement," Puri said.
"If Brazil and India can take a position together on an important
global issue, no one can ignore it," the envoy added.
"India-Brazil strategic partnership is one whose time has come,"
said Puri, who has worked tirelessly as New Delhi's man in Brasilia
to make this transformation possible.
The new strategic equations between India and Brazil, an influential
member of the 45-nation Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG), are reflected
in prospects of cooperation in the crucial area of civilian nuclear
cooperation.
"Brazil has been positive about it. As Brazilian Foreign Minister
Celso Amorim has said, India and Brazil have already agreed to
cooperate in softer areas of civilian nuclear energy," Puri said.
Brazil will, however, take a formal stand in the NSG only after
India concludes an bilateral agreement with the US and puts in place
a safeguards agreement with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).
Promotion of ethanol - a variant of sugarcane - as a motor spirit
internationally is another important area of collaboration between
the two countries.
"Brazilians would like to see ethanol as an internationally traded
commodity. India is already pursuing five per cent blending with
petrol in nine states. The prospects of cooperation and energy
savings are huge," Puri said.
Besides, OVL, India's oil major, and Petrobras, Brazil's energy
giant, are collaborating in oil exploration and have already made
considerable investment in it, Puri said while alluding to the
memorandum of agreement signed between the two during Lula's visit.
Given this growing bonhomie, which is only going to increase further
with more people-to-people contacts, more travel, joint films and,
yes, soccer solidarity between the two nations, bilateral trade and
investment are set for a quantum jump, said Puri.
" $10 billion bilateral trade by 2010 is very achievable. The target
is not only realistic but, as President Lula said here, we can also
exceed it," an upbeat Puri said while noting the "steady upcoming
spiral in bilateral trade," especially after Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh's historic visit to Brasilia in September last year.
The new business buoyancy is epitomised in billion-dollar deals in
India by Embraer, the leading Brazilian manufacturer of civilian
aircraft.
Chennai-based Paramount Airways is in love with Embraer aircraft and
plans to add another 51 Embraer planes to its existing fleet of
five. Of this, 11 Embraer planes will be delivered right this month.
Paramount Airways signed an agreement with Embraer during Lula's
visit for the acquisition of 40 planes, a massive contract worth $2
billion, which will be delivered from 2008 to 2011.
"Facts speak for themselves. Brazil's is one of more important
strategic partnerships of India," said Puri.
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