Lula calls for an end to veto power at the UN: “It’s crazy”

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) called this Friday (October 27, 2023) the right of veto of the permanent members of the UN Security Council to “crazy”. According to Lula, the resolution presented by Brazil for the war between Israel and Hamas was not rejected, as it had the support of the majority in the body.

The proposal had 12 votes in favor, 1 against and two abstentions, but was not approved because the only vote against was given by the United States, a permanent member of the body and with the right to veto.

“I saw a headline here in a newspaper: ‘Brazil’s proposal is rejected’. In fact, this is a lie […] It was rejected because of something crazy, which is the UN Security Council’s right to veto, which I am radically against. This is not democratic”he declared at a breakfast with journalists at Palácio do Planalto.

Lula also once again defended a reform of the Council to accommodate more permanent members. The topic has been on Lula’s agenda since his first term, but there is currently no prospect for an effective change in the body.

“It is the 5 countries of the Security Council that manufacture weapons, that sell weapons, that wage war. It’s the contradiction. That’s why we want to change the council”these.

Brazil occupies the position of rotating member of the body in the 2022-2023 biennium and presides over the Security Council during the month of October.

Watch the entirety of Lula’s coffee with journalists at Planalto (1h22min):

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COFFEE WITH JOURNALISTS

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) brought together 38 journalists from 38 media outlets at a breakfast this Friday (27.Oct.2023) at Palácio do Planalto that lasted 1h20. O Poder360 participated. It was the PT member’s 5th meeting with the media since he returned to power in January this year. The event was held on the birthday of the Chief Executive, who turned 78 years old.

Read the names of the journalists and vehicles that participated in the infographic:

The first lady, Janja Lula da Silva, sat on the president’s left side. On Lula’s right side was the minister of the Presidency’s Communication Secretariat, Paulo Pimenta. At the right end of the main table was also the minister of the General Secretariat of the Presidency, Márcio Macêdo, and at the left end, the press secretary, José Chrispiniano, who coordinated the choice of which journalists could ask Lula questions.

Here are the outlets that asked questions, in the order in which they were asked:

• Economic value;
• Brasil247;
• Reuters;
• Diary of the Center of the World;
• Globo TV;
• Folha de S.Paulo.

The coffee was scheduled for 11 am, but Lula arrived at 11:44 am accompanied by Janja and the Minister of the Secretariat of Institutional Relations, Alexandre Padilha, who left right at the beginning of the coffee.

Pimenta began the meeting with a brief speech in which he summarized the government’s main actions in the 1st year of Lula’s 3rd term. He said that the administration’s initial objective was to resume social programs that were extinct or suspended. He also stated that the government is doing everything in its power to remove all Brazilians who are in Israel and the Gaza Strip and want to leave the conflicted region.

Over coffee, Lula reinforced his government’s determination and said that “no Brazilians in Israel or Gaza”. The minister also gave a round of applause in celebration of Lula’s birthday.

The places at the approximately 10 meter table were pre-defined by the Planalto team. All seats came with the names of the journalists and the vehicle they work for. Breakfast was also laid out on the tables with individual portions of fruit (grapes, mango, papaya and melon), cold cuts such as salami, turkey breast and cheese, carrot and cornmeal cake, a small sandwich and a basket of bread, with cheese bread and croissants. There was coffee, water and orange juice.

At the end of the meeting, Pimenta asked everyone to sing the congratulatory song for Lula. In a joking tone, the president said that he hoped to have received a gift from the journalists, which did not happen.

The president did not take a photo with all the journalists at his side, as is traditionally done in this type of meeting. Pimenta justified that the image would not be made in this way because Lula is still recovering from hip surgery and it is necessary to avoid crowds to avoid the risk of any type of contract that could hurt him.

An official photograph, however, was taken with Lula and Janja in the foreground and the journalists behind them arranged in the places where they were sitting.

The 1st breakfast with the media was on January 12th. On the occasion, Lula met with reporters who cover the day-to-day life of the Palácio do Planalto. They are known, in Brasília, as “sectorists” of the Presidency. At the time, the main topic was the invasion of the headquarters of the Three Powers, which took place on January 8th. 38 journalists were received, including the Poder360.

On February 7, Lula received journalists from at least 40 left-wing outlets at the Palace. In PT groups, they are called “independent media”. On April 6, Lula received columnists and writers from media outlets.

Lula promised to hold another breakfast with journalists by the end of 2023 to present an overview of his first year in government.