President Jair Bolsonaro (no party) mocked this Thursday (18) in Qatar the comparisons made between his tour of the Middle East and the reception of former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) in Europe.
“I saw on Globo News: ‘Bolsonaro disappoints, Lula is a success.’ Oh, for God’s sake,” he declared, before leaving for Brazil.
The Brazilian president ended a six-day trip to three countries. In addition to Qatar, he was also in the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain. He met with local authorities and businessmen, in addition to having visited events such as an air sector fair and Expo 2020, in Dubai.
Simultaneously, Lula, likely opponent of the president in next year’s election, had a vast agenda in Europe, where he visited the European Parliament and was received with the honors of head of state by the president of France, Emmanuel Macron.
The coincidence raised comparisons between the two trips and observations that, while the PT member visited democratically elected leaders, Bolsonaro encountered dictators from the Persian Gulf.
The day before, before visiting the stadium that will host next year’s World Cup final, in Qatar, Bolsonaro had already needled the PT’s tour. “Lula has to walk around Brazil,” said the president.
Bolsonaro said his tour of the Middle East was highly positive. “Excellent trip. Exceptional conversations,” he declared, without going into too much detail about what was discussed with the Arab leaders. “What is reserved is reserved,” he said.
According to the president, Brazil’s international image is very good, and the country has been playing a growing role on the global stage.
“Brazil has increasingly gained prominence in the world. There is great interest in several areas, especially agribusiness, the need for food security.”
The Brazilian government is the target of criticism by various international actors, especially in the environmental area and in relation to the management of the Covid-19 pandemic, among other issues.
Bolsonaro, however, reaffirmed that his government enjoys credibility. “Only the treatment given to us [na viagem], and we demonstrate to them that we are living in a good phase,” he said.
He also reinforced one of the most controversial statements he made during the tour, when he told an audience of investors in Dubai that the Amazon does not catch fire. This contradicts data obtained by satellite that confirm the growth of fires in the forest.
“I want to invite you to go with a gallon of gasoline in the heart of the Amazon rainforest and see if it catches on fire. Don’t catch on fire. You guys [imprensa] continue to hit the key to speak ill of Brazil”.
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