Addressing a press conference following the G-20 summit on September 10, Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva said it was very gratifying that an important meeting like G-20, which Brazil was a founder of, showed the importance of a multipolar world.
Speaking after the conference, the President said the biofuel alliance is something Brazil fought for a long time, and the country has a particular competence in this. “What happened at G20 is more important than the money spent in organizing it. The global biofuel alliance is one great initiative, so we should say India invested the money, not spent the money.”
India on September 9 announced the launch of the Global Biofuel Alliance and urged G-20 nations to join the initiative with a plea to take ethanol blending with petrol globally to 20%. The Alliance was launched by Mr. Modi along with a host of global leaders including U.S. President Joe Biden, Mr. Lula, Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni on the sidelines of the G-20 Summit.
“Glad PM Modi and President Biden could be part of it,” Mr. Lula added.
Mr. Lula further said that it’s a huge challenge for Brazil to take over G-20. “We will put inequality at the top: inequality of gender, race, education, health, poverty and hunger. The world needs balance.”
Mr. Modi on September 10 handed over the ceremonial gavel to Mr. Lula, initiating the process of transition of the President’s chair for the next round of the G-20 in Brazil.
Mr. Lula also said that another big priority for us is the reform of multilateral institutions: the World Bank, and UNSC, where we need to reorganize the UN’s top body.
“What is the explanation that 130 million people go hungry today?” he asked. “We need to move towards growth, but also equity otherwise the GDP growth will go to just a few people. If it’s more equitable we will have less unrest, less hunger and poverty,” he said. The African debt of $800 billion should be converted into public works programmes for building infrastructure and alleviate poverty, he added.
My task was to put Brazil back on the geopolitical map, to speak up again for the inequality in the world, the President said.
He also congratulated India for organising a successful summit. “The people of Brazil will organise a good event...We want to use many Brazilian cities and make G-20 popular with the civil society. We want a more democratic G-20,” he said.
It would be up to Brazil’s judiciary to decide if Russian President Putin would be arrested or not if he attends next year’s G20 summit in the South American country, he said. “If Mr. Putin decides to join, it is the judiciary’s power to decide and not my government,” Mr. Lula told reporters
The Brazilian President also said he was not aware of why Chinese President Xi Jinping and Mr. Putin did not attend the summit. “I hope that they will come to Rio next year, and I also hope there’s no more war in Ukraine.”
Mr. Lula said that the G-20 contains BRICS and all G7 countries, and it is very important as it becomes an umbrella organisation for both. There is a need to change the multilateral system, and for this, we need to be in the G-20 together.
“Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) countries are already in G20— Brazil, Argentina and Mexico. African Union membership was very important. Let’s see if the situation develops to take other groupings as well,” he said.
Mr. Lula also said Brazil would not be joining the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
The African Union became a full member of the G-20 on September 9, 2023. Welcoming the African Union’s Chairperson Azaly Assoumani to the table of the G-20 leaders, Mr. Modi said the inclusion of the African bloc will enhance the effectiveness of the G-20. After the EU, the African Union is the second regional bloc to join the G20.
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