Notícias
The Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs of Germany, Guido Westerwelle, visits Brazil – Brasília, São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, February 13-16, 2012
The Federal Minister for Foreign Affairs of Germany, Guido Westerwelle, will visit Brazil from February 13-16, 2012.
In Brasília, the German Foreign Minister will be received by the Minister of External Relations, Antonio de Aguiar Patriota, and by the Minister of Education, Aloizio Mercadante. In São Paulo, Minister Westerwelle will be received by the Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation, Marco Antônio Raupp, and by Governor Geraldo Alckmin. In Rio de Janeiro, he will meet with Governor Sérgio Cabral Filho.
Following up on the meeting between President Dilma Rousseff and President Christian Wulff, held in Brasília, in May 2011, Ministers Patriota and Westerwelle will address the strengthening of the Brazil-Germany Strategic Partnership. Areas such as sustainable development, energy, infrastructure, education, science, technology and innovation are at the core of the bilateral cooperation. 10,000 Brazilian students will be received in German universities within the scope of the “Science without Borders” program. Brazil will be the partner country of the International Trade Fair for Information Technology and Telecommunications, to be held in Hannover from 6 to 10 March 2012.
The Ministers will also address President Dilma Rousseff’s visit to Germany, scheduled to take place next March.
Global affairs, such as the world financial situation, the United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio+20) and the reform of political and economic governance institutions, will be discussed as well. Alongside India and Japan, Brazil and Germany form the G4, a group engaged in the reform of the United Nations.
Germany is Brazil’s main trade partner in Europe and the fourth main Brazilian trade partner in the world. In 2011, bilateral trade reached a record US$ 24.25 billion, an expansion of 17.2% in relation to 2010. Last year, Brazilian exports to Germany increased 11.1% in relation to the year before, exceeding US$ 9 billion. Both countries are interested in fostering cooperation between small and medium enterprises, with a view to strengthening industry-related research. There are more than 1,200 German companies established in Brazil. The contribution of these companies to the Brazilian GDP is estimated at between 8% and 10%.