We cannot live in a world of lies used to justify destruction, says Lula

In an environment of increasing interference by US imperialism over Latin America and other continents, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva once again defended the autonomy and independence of nations and multilateral relations. The speech took place during the 1st High-Level Forum of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (Celac) and Africa, held in Bogotá, Colombia, this Saturday (21).

Lula stressed that “we can no longer live in a world of lies, in which people build a negative image of the enemy to justify destruction”.

He further stated that “we are no longer colonized countries. We gained sovereignty with our independence. We cannot allow anyone to interfere and harm the territorial integrity of each country.”

The president highlighted that “our continents bring together almost half of the world’s countries and a quarter of the world’s population. But we are still penalized by an unequal order, established while colonialism and apartheid prevailed in many parts of the world.”

He also said that it does not make sense “that Latin America and Africa do not have adequate representation in the UN Security Council. The wars in Ukraine, Gaza, Iran and many other conflicts take us away from the path of development. They generate economic, social and political effects throughout the world. They increase energy and food prices.”

He defended the need to “keep the South Atlantic free from foreign geopolitical disputes” and recalled that this is the objective of the ministerial meeting of the South Atlantic Peace and Cooperation Zone, which Brazil will organize on April 9.

Wars and conflicts

Lula also demonstrated his concern about the current global situation. “It is important that we never forget that the world today is experiencing the greatest concentration of conflicts since World War II”, he highlighted.

At the same time, he highlighted that “while US$2.7 trillion was spent last year on weapons and wars, we still have 630 million people going hungry”.

The Brazilian president also criticized “the total and absolute lack of functioning of the United Nations”. He recalled that the UN Security Council and its permanent members were created “to try to maintain peace”, but “they are the ones who are waging wars”.

Lula reinforced that “as a human being, as a democrat and as president of Brazil” he is “outraged by the passivity of security members”, who were not able to solve the problem in the Gaza Strip, Iraq, Libya, Ukraine or Iran.

In other words, he asked, “can everything be resolved by war? Who has the most cannons, who has the most ships, who has the most planes, who has the most money, thinks he owns the world?”

Attacks on Iran

When speaking specifically about Iran, Lula recalled his visit to Tehran, in 2010, together with the president of Turkey, to seek an understanding against the enrichment of uranium for military purposes.

“We made an agreement. When this agreement was published, instead of European countries and the United States accepting it, they increased the blockade on Iran. And it’s very funny, this was already published in the press, it’s no secret to anyone. I had received a letter from the comrade [Barack] Obama [ex-presidente dos Estados Unidos]saying that if Mr. Ahmadinejad [então presidente do Irã] If I agreed to that agreement, everything was fine. Because we made Ahmadinejad sign the agreement as it was in Obama’s letter.”

Lula went on to remember that, to his surprise, “when the agreement was published, both Europe and the United States increased the blockade. After a few years, they made another agreement worse than the one we had made. And now Iran has been invaded under the pretext that it was building a nuclear bomb. Where are Saddam Hussein’s chemical weapons? Where are they? Who found them?”

Still on the illegal interference of the USA, Lula addressed the situation in Cuba and Venezuela. “What are they doing with Cuba now? What did they do with Venezuela? Is this democratic? In which paragraph and in which article of the UN Charter does it say that a president of one country can invade another? In which document in the world does this say? Not even in the Bible. There is nothing that allows this to happen. Is it the use of force and power to colonize us again?”, he asked, indignant.

He also warned about the interests of imperialism in the region’s natural wealth, such as oil and rare earths. “In other words, we won’t have a chance [de desenvolvimento] now that we have discovered that we have rare earths, that we have discovered that we have critical minerals? Now can we aspire to make a quality leap in the production of alternative fuels?”

The president said it is necessary “for us to be able to shout loudly and clearly so as not to allow what has already happened in Gaza to happen in other countries recently”.

Technology and environment

Among the other points covered in his speech, Lula also spoke about the use of technology for the development of countries and the environmental crisis.

“We need a cooperation model that aligns digital governance and respect for fundamental rights, strengthening our sovereignty. Regulation of the virtual world is not a control mechanism. It is above all an instrument for inclusion and protection of people”, he declared.

At this time, he highlighted that “to combat hate speech, disinformation, child pornography and misogyny, Brazil is updating its legislation”, citing as an example the entry into force of the ECA Digital.

Furthermore, he highlighted the importance of the Brazilian Artificial Intelligence Plan, which includes two lines of financing for cooperation with Africa and Latin America. “There are 20 million dollars for financing joint projects and 10 million for the use of Brazilian AI infrastructures,” he said.

Regarding combating climate change and preserving the environment, Lula pointed out that “although we are not historically responsible for global warming, we are the most affected by extreme weather events”.

Therefore, he continued, “we have in common the concern of combating desertification processes. We share the responsibility of taking care of the two largest tropical forests in the world: the Amazon Forest and the Congo Forest. We cooperate in various forums to combat environmental crimes, which are already the third largest source of resources for organized crime.”

Lula recalled the work that has been done with the Tropical Forests Forever Fund, an initiative that has already mobilized almost US$7 billion. “These are not donations. The profits generated by the TFFF will be shared between tropical forest countries and investors”, he highlighted.

Furthermore, he added that “science has already proven that without a transition to low-carbon economies, it will not be possible to avoid the climate crisis. Therefore, the energy transition must also be one of the axes of joint action.”

Lula emphasized that “our enormous potential for producing clean energy from solar, wind and water sources still contrasts with the precarious access to electricity in many parts of our continents” and that “the formation of an international biofuels market opens up opportunities for local development and enables the decarbonization of the economy”.

At the same time, he pointed out: “Our countries also have important reserves of critical minerals, which play a strategic role in the transition to low-carbon economies. Cooperation between countries that hold these mineral resources will be vital to be able to add value in our own territories and avoid neo-extractive attacks.”