President Sauli Niinistö started his two-day visit to Brazil by meeting his official brother Lula da Silva.
STT
President Sauli Niinistö began an official visit to Brazil on Thursday and met his Brazilian official brother Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. The geopolitical situation, common global challenges, current regional issues and bilateral relations between Finland and Brazil were discussed in the discussions between the presidents.
At the presidents’ joint press conference, Niinistö said that he and his host also discussed the war in Ukraine, among other things.
– We share the same view that peace is the most important thing, and in my opinion, every attempt at peace is very valuable.
Niinistö added that Ukraine deserves a legitimate peace, i.e. a peace it can accept.
On Friday, Niinistö will participate in, among other things, a business event organized by the Sao Paulo State Industry Association. The event will also be attended by representatives of Finnish and Brazilian business life.
Niinistö’s entourage in Brazil includes a business delegation with representatives from various business sectors.
Brazil has not placed itself on the Western front in the war in Ukraine
Lula has aroused indignation in the West with his comments about the war in Ukraine.
He has called for a negotiated solution between Ukraine and Russia and accused the United States of inciting the war by arming Ukraine. He has also said that Ukraine is complicit in the war of aggression launched by Russia.
– Although my government condemns the violation of Ukraine’s territorial integrity, we support a negotiated political solution to the conflict, Lula stated in April.
The background of Lula’s statements on Russia is partly Brazil’s close relations with Russia, for example in the form of trade, political researcher Oliver Stuenkel describes in Foreign Policy magazine.
In the background, there is also the wider disappointment of the global South with Western countries.
– Brazilians often consider the rhetoric of Western countries to be hypocritical, Stuenkel wrote, referring to, for example, the US invasion of Iraq in 2003.
Lula has since softened his statements by stating that Ukraine is a major victim of the war.