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President Jair Bolsonaro visits Suriname to negotiate bilateral agreements

The two presidents discussed bilateral agreements in areas such as security and defense, infrastructure, energy, trade and the environment.

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Posted on 01/21/2022 06:33 am

President Jair Bolsonaro visits Suriname to negotiate bilateral agreements

President Jair Bolsonaro was, this Thursday (20/1), in Paramaribo, Suriname, for a visit with the local government. - Photo: Clauber Cleber Caetano/PR

 

President Jair Bolsonaro makes an official visit to Suriname, a South American country that shares a border with Brazil in the Northern Region. He was received in the capital, Paramaribo, by the President of the host country, Chandrikapersad Santokhi, in the early afternoon of this Thursday (20/01). The two Presidents had a private meeting shortly after their arrival, then participated in a working lunch, also accompanied by the President of the Republic of Guyana, Mohamed Irfaan Ali. The presidential delegation visits Guyana this Friday (21/01) .

 

In the late afternoon, Presidents Jair Bolsonaro and Chandrikapersad Santokhi held an expanded meeting to discuss bilateral agreements in areas such as security and defense, infrastructure, energy, trade and the environment. At the end of the bilateral meeting, they signed a Joint Declaration.

 

It is a great satisfaction to be in Suriname, a brother and friend country. We brought in a team of ministers who seek to meet the just demands of our countries. We have our expertise in oil prospecting to offer the country and, for that, we brought our Minister of Mines and Energy. I thank and greet what we discussed earlier, regarding the possible priority for the country, through Petrobras, to collaborate in oil and gas prospecting”, highlighted President Jair Bolsonaro in a statement to the press.

Among the matters agreed between the two nations are the resumption of negotiations for the expansion of an agreement to cover the largest number of economic sectors and stimulate bilateral trade flows; negotiate bilateral sanitary and phytosanitary certifications to facilitate agricultural trade; hold a bilateral seminar involving businessmen from both countries with a focus on new opportunities in the oil and gas sector; intensify the current cooperation in security, with a focus on collaboration in the area of ​​public security and the fight against transnational organized crime, among others.

 

“We have a lot to offer each other, as well as cooperating. This is our feeling, this is the reason for my coming here, in which I also thank you for the honorable invitation on the part of our President of Suriname. Thanks for the opportunity. Our peoples have a lot to gain”, concluded President Jair Bolsonaro.

 

In his speech, the President of Suriname highlighted the long partnership with Brazil, in particular, technical cooperation through the Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC). According to Chandrikapersad Santokhi, there are 25 projects, of which some are in the process of being implemented, others have already been formally signed and are ready to be implemented, in addition to others still in the negotiation stage in areas such as agriculture, education, natural resources, administration public, health, cyber security, information and communication technology, cooperation between central banks, justice and police.

 

The president of Suriname also thanked the donation made by Brazil of doses of vaccine against Covid-19 and against several other diseases. “I am convinced that our cooperation in the future in various areas, including trade, investment in energy, including oil and gas here, security, defense, as well as immigration and consular matters, will certainly yield concrete results in mutual benefit,” he said. President Chandrikapersad Santokhi.

 

Ties between Brazil and Suriname

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the estimate is that there are currently between 15 and 30 thousand Brazilians living in Suriname, many of them engaged in mineral exploration activities. The migration regularization of this contingent is the object of high-level political contacts between the two countries, in addition to being dealt with by the Working Group on Migratory and Consular Affairs, created in 2011.

 

The two countries have a broad cooperation and technical assistance agenda. The bilateral technical cooperation program comprises 12 projects, six of which are in the thematic area of ​​agriculture and the others in public administration, education, geology, environment, health and cyber security.

 

Cooperation in Defense and Security is another important pillar of the bilateral relationship. The common border is 593 kilometers, between the states of Pará and Amapá. Because it is a region covered by natural barriers, such as the Serra do Tumucumaque and by areas of environmental and indigenous preservation of