Summit of the Americas: the surprising meeting between Alberto Fernández and Bolsonaro

Thursday’s official presidential agenda at the Summit of the Americas underwent a surprising change: after his critical speech at the plenary meeting, the President had a half-hour meeting in the VIP conference room with his Brazilian counterpart, Jair Bolsonaro, of which about ten, went alone. According to reports, the crossing began as a greeting that Bolsonaro was going to give Fernández and led to a meeting that arose informally, but that took place in the formal framework of the summit, in which the central issue was the energy issue.

Bolsonaro conveyed to Fernandez the country’s interest in importing gas. The Brazilian foreign minister, Carlos Franca, celebrated the meeting in statements to the press.

The conversation pointed to the need to join efforts not only in the energy issue but also in grain production, in a global context that demands greater regional integration.

The relationship between Alberto Fernández and Bolsonaro

After the Brazilians did not attend the inauguration of Fernández, the first meetings that the leaders had taken place in the framework of the pandemic, and always virtually. A personal meeting took place at the G20 summit in October last year in Rome. But then there was no space for extended talk, it was limited to the moment of greeting for the “family photo” of that summit, and the exchange was basically joked about soccer and the teams of both countries.

Beyond the fact that there was no scheduled bilateral meeting between the leaders, the meeting caused surprise in a relationship that always remained tense, and in pre-election times for Brazil in which Lula Da Silva is emerging as the candidate with the greatest intention of the vote.

How is the President’s agenda in the United States

Alberto Fernández’s agenda continues today, Friday, the last day of the Summit, with a meeting with his Chilean counterpart, Gabriel Boric, in which a gas agreement will be signed, a bilateral meeting with the president of Peru, Pedro Castillo, and the traditional “family photo” with all the leaders who attended.