Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has announced plans to form a “strategic alliance” with India to strengthen political, economic and technological cooperation between the two nations.
In a video message posted on X on Saturday (local time) after Brazilian Vice President Gerald Alckmin’s recent visit to India, Lula stressed the importance of using India’s “exceptional market” for mutual benefit.
“Vice President Gerald Alckmin’s visit to India in preparation for my trip early next year is very important because India has an exceptional market. We can have a fantastic alliance with India – political, space, business and economic,” Lula said in the video.
“So I think it was an extraordinary job and Indians like Brazil and Brazilians like Indians. That’s why we will create a strategic alliance with India and develop both the Brazilian and Indian economies,” he added.
The result of Alckmin’s visit
Lula’s remarks came a day after Vice President Geraldo Alckmin wrapped up a visit to India aimed at deepening bilateral ties and laying the groundwork for Lula’s state visit to India next year – part of the ongoing implementation of the roadmap outlined during the Modi-Lula summit in July.
The ultimate goal, Lula said in the post, was to focus on strengthening trade relations as a number of Brazilian companies seek opportunities to enter the Indian market.
He also highlighted several positive results of Alckmin’s return from India, saying it only brings “good news”. Key events include the opening of the Brazilian airline Embraer’s office in India, the introduction of an electronic visa to facilitate business travel and the establishment of new partnerships.
Complementarity, not competition
Addressing media questions about India and Brazil potentially positioning themselves as alternative markets under US tariffs, Alckmin clarified that cooperation between the two countries is complementary and not competitive.
He further emphasized that both the countries are democracies and not competitors, ANI reported.
Read also | India and Brazil agree to expand trade partnership; Goyal calls for stronger ties
“Apart from the US issue, we are talking about two countries, two democracies, two countries that defend multilateralism, two countries of continental dimension, Brazil and India, that have everything to grow trade, to grow more investment,” he told ANI.
Calling India one of the fastest growing countries in the world, he also said that “Brazil’s agricultural harvest is 16 percent higher this year, so there are many opportunities for complementarity: in technology, industrial, mining, agriculture… We will not compete in products, we will have economic complementarity,” ANI reported.
Growing bilateral trade
The deepening engagement between Brazil and India builds on an already strong economic relationship. During Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Brazil in July, the two leaders set an ambitious target of increasing bilateral trade to $20 billion within five years.
Read also | IMF raises India’s growth forecast to 2025-26 despite US tariff hike
This means a significant acceleration compared to the current numbers. In fiscal year 2024-25, merchandise trade between the two nations will reach $12.19 billion, cementing Brazil’s position as India’s largest trading partner in Latin America and the Caribbean, according to the Ministry of Trade and Industry.
In August, US President Donald Trump imposed a 50% tariff on several Brazilian products that were already subject to a 26.4% tax. His administration also imposed tariffs of up to 50% on most Indian exports, including an additional 25% tariff in response to India’s continued purchases of Russian oil.
