In a letter to Joe Biden, President Jair Bolsonaro (non-party) pledged to eliminate illegal deforestation in Brazil by 2030, in a strong nod to the US leader’s environmental agenda at this time. day.
Bolsonaro sent a seven-page letter to Biden on Wednesday (14), days before the US president held a summit with dozens of heads of state on climate change. The meeting hosted by Washington will be held on April 22.
In the message, Bolsonaro responded for the first time to one of Americans’ main demands: the commitment to end illegal deforestation in the years to come.
“We want to reaffirm, in this act, with unequivocal support for the efforts undertaken by Your Excellency, our commitment to eliminate illegal deforestation in Brazil by 2030”, wrote Bolsonaro.
The content of the letter has been discussed in recent days between Bolsonaro and Ministers Carlos França (Foreign Affairs), Ricardo Salles (Environment) and Tereza Cristina (Agriculture).
The promise of illegal deforestation was not included in the other objectives assumed by the country in the environmental field.
“I reiterate the commitment of Brazil and my government in international efforts to protect the environment, fight climate change and promote sustainable development. We will be extremely happy to work with you for excellence in all of these common goals. “Bolsonaro said in the document.
The president added another sign to the letter. He said Brazil could anticipate the long-term goal of achieving climate neutrality by 2050, ten years ahead of schedule.
Bolsonaro, however, stressed that anticipation depends on the viability of “significant annual resources, which contribute in this direction”.
The Brazilian president also acknowledged that the country is facing increasing rates of deforestation in the Amazon and said the trend has been happening since 2012 – within Dilma Rousseff’s government.
The letter to Biden differs from the tone adopted by Bolsonaro during the first two years of his tenure, when he accused foreign governments of questioning Brazilian sovereignty over the Amazon, attacked NGOs and criticized indigenous leaders.
In the letter, Bolsonaro even said he was ready to work with the third sector and indigenous peoples.
“We want to hear from third sector entities, indigenous peoples, traditional communities and all those who are ready to contribute to a constructive debate and genuinely committed to solving the problems.
Bolsonaro maintained the call for international assistance to meet the goals of reducing carbon emissions into the atmosphere. But he moved away from the rhetoric – echoed by Salles – that countries must provide resources before any commitment by Brazil.
“ By underlining the ambition of the objectives that we have assumed, I see myself in the contingency of emphasizing, once again, the need to obtain adequate support from the international community, in the scale, volume and speed compatible with the scale and urgency of the challenges to be met. “.
“We are inspired by the belief that Brazil deserves to be rightly compensated for the environmental services that its citizens have provided to the planet.”