* Brazil: On 19 March, Brazil’s President
Jair Bolsonaro met US President
Donald Trump at the White House in Washington DC, on his first official foreign visit since taking office in January. According to a joint statement released by the White House and Itamaraty (Brazil’s foreign ministry), the two
“committed to building a new partnership between their two countries focused on increasing prosperity, enhancing security, and promoting democracy, freedom, and national sovereignty”. The bilateral agenda mentioned military cooperation, trade, and pursuing efforts to restore democracy in Venezuela. President
Trump announced his intention to designate Brazil as a ‘Major Non-NATO [North Atlantic Treaty Organization] Ally’ and mooted the possibility of it becoming a NATO ally.
Trump said that the US will support Brazil’s request for membership to the Organisation of Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), in exchange for which Brazil agreed to relinquish provisions for special and differential treatment in World Trade Organisation (WTO) negotiations. Trade-related commitments listed in the joint statement included ensuring better access for US wheat and pork exports to Brazil and re-opening the US market to exports of Brazilian beef.
Trump and
Bolsonaro also announced the revival of the US-Brazil CEO forum, the creation of a US-Brazil energy forum to facilitate energy-related trade and investment, and the creation of a US$100m biodiversity impact investment fund to enable sustainable investment in the Amazon.
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