Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi
New Delhi, Feb 22: Narendra Modi on Saturday addressed a joint press conference with Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, underlining that closer India-Brazil cooperation would strengthen the voice of the Global South in the international arena.
Speaking at the joint presser in the national capital, Modi said India and Brazil’s partnership on the global stage has been strong and influential.
“As democratic nations, we will continue to advance the priorities and aspirations of the Global South. When India and Brazil work together, the voice of the Global South becomes stronger and more confident,” he said.
Modi emphasised that global challenges must be addressed through dialogue and diplomacy. “India and Brazil are unanimous that terrorism and its supporters are enemies of all humanity. We also agree that reform of global institutions is essential to address the challenges of our time. We will continue to work together in this direction,” he added.
President Lula recalled hosting Modi in Brasília in July last year and described the visit as a milestone. He said the two countries had restructured their bilateral cooperation agenda across five key areas — defence and security; food and nutritional security; energy transition and climate change; digital transformation and emerging technologies; and industrial partnerships in strategic sectors.
He noted that this year marks 20 years of the Brazil-India Strategic Partnership and said both sides were moving from planning to implementation. Lula said the preparation for the visit included a trip by Vice-President Geraldo Alckmin and a business delegation last year, as well as the participation of several ministers and around 300 business leaders this week.
Highlighting India’s progress in cutting-edge sectors such as information technology, artificial intelligence, biotechnology and space exploration, Lula said these developments create significant opportunities for cooperation with Brazil.
Modi said cooperation in climate-resilient agriculture, precision farming and biofertilisers would strengthen food security in both nations. He described the agreement on critical minerals and rare earths as a major step towards building a resilient supply chain.
“Our cooperation in the defence sector is also steadily growing. This is a great example of mutual trust and strategic alignment. We will continue to strengthen this win-win partnership,” he said.
The Prime Minister also pointed to immense potential in the health and pharmaceutical sectors, stating that India would work to increase the supply of affordable and quality medicines to Brazil.
He said the two sides were committed to expanding bilateral trade to over USD 20 billion in the next five years. Modi thanked President Lula for participating in the Global AI Impact Summit and praised his leadership in advancing India-Brazil ties.
Earlier in the day, Modi and Lula held delegation-level talks. External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar, Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal, National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, Minister of State for External Affairs Pabitra Margherita, Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri and MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal were among those present.
A ceremonial welcome was accorded to President Lula at the forecourt of Rashtrapati Bhavan, where he received a Guard of Honour. He was welcomed by Modi and President Droupadi Murmu during his state visit to India.