President Lula’s speech during the opening of the 9th meeting of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States

Latin America and the Caribbean currently face one of the most critical moments of our history.

We have trodden a long path to consolidate our ideals of emancipation.

We abolished slavery and overcame military dictatorships, and yet we continue to live with social exclusion, with hunger, with misery.

Only recently have we begun to value our own original peoples.

The interference of old and new powers has been — and continues to be — a constant shadow throughout this process.

Now, our autonomy is once again in check.

Attempts to resume old hegemonies still loom over our region.

Freedom and self-determination are the first victims of a world without multilaterally agreed rules.

Migrants are criminalized and deported under degrading conditions.

Arbitrary tariffs destabilize the international economy and elevate prices.

History teaches us that there are no winners in commercial wars.

If we move forward separately, the Latin American and Caribbean communities risk returning to the condition of a zone of influence in a new division of the globe between superpowers.

The moment requires us to put our differences aside.

We must revive the pluralistic and pragmatic spirit that brought us together in the early 2000s and led to the creation of UNASUR and CELAC itself.

Other regions are getting ready to respond to the transformations underway.

I have just returned from Asia, where I witnessed ASEAN’s vibrancy.

The European Union is reorganizing itself to address the NATO crisis and respond to unilateral trade measures.

The African Union formulated a shared vision for development for the next four decades.

Latin America and the Caribbean must redefine their place in the new unfolding global order.

Our international insertion must not be guided only by defensive interests. We need an action program structured around three themes that require collective action.

The first one is the defense of democracy.

No country can impose its political system upon another.

However, it was during the democratic periods that Brazil advanced the most in overcoming its social and economic challenges.

In the past years, we have watched the erosion of trust in politics, which opened space for authoritarian projects.

Disinformation, hate, and extremism are disseminated on online platforms, twisting and distorting freedom of expression.

Negationists despise science and culture and even universities are under attack.

Powerful individuals and companies — which consider themselves above the law— invest against the sovereignty of our countries.

It is tragic that attempts at coups d’état have once again become part of our daily lives.

Our countries will only be safe if they can eradicate hunger, generate well-being, and ensure opportunities for all.

In line with CELAC’s Food and Nutritional Security Plan, Brazil launched —during its G20 Presidency— the Global Alliance against Hunger and Poverty.

We invite everyone to join this initiative, which will begin its activities with projects in Haiti and the Dominican Republic.

The second theme that requires joint action is climate change.

The latest IPCC report describes Latin America and the Caribbean as one of the most vulnerable regions of the planet.

The risk of Amazon rainforest collapse and Antarctic ice melt are tipping points that threaten our very survival.

The rise of the sea level represents an existential threat to the Caribbean islands and coastal zones.

COP30, in the very heart of the Amazon, will not only be Brazil’s COP, but the COP of the entire Latin American and Caribbean region.

We must demand from the rich countries emission reduction goals in line with the Paris Agreement and financing goals that meet the needs of a just transition.

The Tropical Forests Forever Fund, which we will launch in Belém, will allow nations that preserve their forest cover to be compensated for their efforts.

We are home to vast biodiversity and a rich source of renewable energy, including significant reserves of critical minerals, which must serve our own development.

Energy cooperation in Latin America and the Caribbean is not merely an environmental imperative, it is also a strategic need and an economic opportunity.

The third theme of shared interest is our economic and commercial integration.

The stronger and more united our economies, the more protected we will be against unilateral actions.

In 2023, trade among Latin American and Caribbean countries corresponded to a mere 14% of the region’s exports.

The annual trade volume that Brazil holds with CELAC countries is 86 billion dollars, larger than what we have with the United States and close to what we have with the European Union.

We must promote regional trade of goods and services, its diversification, and growing facilitation.

To expand our exchange, my administration is determined to reactivate ALADI’s Reciprocal Payments and Credits Agreement and to expand the Local Currency Payment System. Integrating transport, energy, and telecommunications networks helps bridge distances, lower costs, and foster synergies across production chains.

Brazil has been promoting five South American Integration Routes that will unite the Caribbean, the Atlantic, and the Pacific.

Strengthening regional financial institutions —such as CAF, the Caribbean Development Bank, and FONPLATA— is key to ensuring that projects can move beyond the drawing board.

I will be happy to receive the Caribbean leaders in Brasilia in June to deepen this debate during the second Brazil-Caribbean Summit.

We will also act during the MERCOSUR Presidency to sign the agreement with the European Union and strengthen ties with the Central American countries.

Our integration is an urgent task that must not be held hostage to ideological differences.

Thus, it is time to face the debate about the rule of consensus.

Even if we recognize its merit of building convergencies, it is indisputable that it has been currently generating more paralysis than unity, transforming itself into a veto right.

The numerous footnotes included in recent declarations demonstrate that expecting uniformity is unrealistic.

There are examples of other regions in which we can find inspiration.

To analyze this issue, I suggest the establishment of a working group that can present recommendations by the next Summit.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The world now holds the unfortunate record for the highest number of conflicts since the Second World War.

We do not want wars or genocide. We need peace, development, and free trade.

Maintaining Latin America and the Caribbean as a peace zone means working to ensure that force never overrides peaceful conflict resolution.

Multilateralism is shaken every time we remain silent in the face of threats to the sovereignty of the countries of the region.

We cannot stand by in the face of the embargo on Cuba, the sanctions imposed on Venezuela, or the deep social turmoil engulfing Haiti.

We must recover our regional tradition of respecting diplomatic asylum.

CELAC can contribute to reviving the credibility of the UN by electing the organization’s first woman Secretary General.

Colleagues,

I want to thank our colleague Xiomara Castro for leading CELAC during a particularly challenging year for the world and the region.

I wish colleague Gustavo Petro much success in conducting CELAC in the upcoming period.

I also salute my friend Yamandú Orsi’s decision to assume the CELAC Presidency in 2026.

All I can say to you is this: count on Brazil to keep building our shared Great Homeland.

Thank you very much.