Pressed by the advance of deforestation in the Amazon, President Jair Bolsonaro (no party) declared, during his participation in a Russian business event, that Brazil “is proud” to preserve the Amazon.
The president cited preservation data as one of his government’s main attrition effects on the international stage.
“Brazilian agriculture meets the highest health and sustainability requirements. Only 27% of our territory is used by agro-industry. We are proud to conserve 84% of our Amazon biome and 66% of our native vegetation, ”Bolsonaro said in a recorded statement. and relayed on the forum.
“In the years to come, Brazil is expected to consolidate itself as the world’s leading food producer. Even in the context of the pandemic ravaging the planet, we continue to guarantee food security for one sixth of the world’s population,” he said. he declared.
The event was chaired by Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani, and the Austrian ruler, Sebastian Kurz, participated by video conference.
Like Bolsonaro, Argentine leader Alberto Fernández made a statement on recorded video.
Bolsonaro focused his speech on Brazil’s relations with Russia and Eurasia and said the country wanted to deepen its trade relations with countries in the region.
“It is Brazil’s desire to broaden and deepen the relations of friendship and cooperation with all countries in the Eurasian region, especially with our host, Russia, a long-time partner of my country,” Bolsonaro said.
The Brazilian president also briefly discussed the trade agenda with Russia, citing that the two economies are “positively inserted into the agribusiness value chain”.
“Brazil is the main destination for Russian fertilizer exports, the main supplier of an essential input for Brazilian agriculture. We want to maintain this complementarity, which is healthy for both parties, ”he said.
However, he argued that this trade agenda also incorporates a greater degree of development, covering products with greater added value.
International pressure on Brazil in terms of the environment is due to the increase in deforestation.
In April, for the second month in a row, the Amazon broke the recent record for deforestation, according to data from Deter, a system of the Inpe (National Institute for Space Research). It was also the worst April in the current time series, which begins in 2015 – previous data was less accurate.
Recently, the investigations against Minister Ricardo Salles (Environment) have also started to generate wear and tear on the international agenda.
Minister Carmen Lúcia, of the STF (Federal Supreme Court), ordered an investigation to investigate Salles. The decision was made in a criminal report presented in April to the PGR (Attorney General’s Office) against Salles for alleged action to obstruct the investigation into the largest seizure of timber in Brazil, carried out as part of Operation Handroanthus. .
Salles is already the target of an investigation at the Supreme Court, under the report of Minister Alexandre de Moraes. In this case, the suspicion of facilitating the illegal export of timber is investigated.