Lulu tells Chavez 'we are living a very important moment'!

[Judi Lynn]

Free from US LatAm Learns to Get Free from Own Blindness, Brazil's Lula Tells Chavez
Written by Francesco Neves
Saturday, 31 October 2009

Brazilian president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is back in Brazil after a trip to Venezuela where he met his counterpart Hugo Chavez to sign a series of agreements. On Friday, Brazil and Venezuela ratified in El Tigre about 15 public and private cooperation accords. The areas involved: energy, oil, food, roads and urbanization of slums. President Lula called these actions a complement to the work done by Latin American liberators, like Simon Bolivar, José de San Martin and Antonio José de Sucre.

Next to Chavez, Lula also celebrated the fact that the Brazilian senate's foreign relations committee has voted in favor of admitting Venezuela into the South American economic club Mercosur. For a time mainly after Chavez statement that the Brazilian legislative was being manipulated by the US it was in doubt the senators would ever approve the Venezuelan membership.

Lula's own effort plus the lobby by businessmen ended changing the winds direction in the Upper House. For Lula, the Senate's action was "a gratifying gesture. It was a rupture with prejudice." And he added: What Brazil is doing today, Brazil could have done 20 years ago, 15 years ago, 10 years ago. The truth of the matter is that Brazil, a country with an extraordinary economy, with an exceptional industrial potential, also couldn't easily free itself from a privileged look towards Europe and the United States. In other words, when we got to the government we made a decision of government: First, let's take a look at what is closer to us."

The Brazilian leader talked to the Venezuelan president about the special times Brazil and Venezuela are experiencing: "Chavez, I think the moment we are living, in South America, is an extremely important moment for the consolidation of ideas of those who came before us and conceived the liberation of our countries, first from the Spanish and the Portuguese, and then from the English, from the Americans.

More:
http://www.brazzilmag.com/content/view/11380/

[Peace Patriot]

1. Wow! I love this guy, Lulu, for sticking up for Chavez! He is a "big picture" leader for sure!

He has never waivered from the principle of solidarity. And we can only imagine the pressure that has been exerted on him to knuckle under to "divide and conquer."

Hats off to Lulu!

:bounce: :applause: :bounce:

[Peace Patriot]

2. Hey, Judi! What's with the incomprehensible title (to this article)?

You aren't obliged to go with that title. It's not LBN. This article deserves a better title. It contains VERY IMPORTANT news. People need to understand what is really going on in South America. I'd give it a title like, "Lulu endorses the Bolivarian Revolution!" or "Lulu tells Chavez 'we are living a very important moment'!" or "Lulu Favors Venezuela Over the U.S.--signs accords with Chavez!" These titles reflect what is actually in the article.

[Judi Lynn]

4. Yup, that WAS a little clumsy. I just changed it. Didn't think of dropping the original.

It was good to see Lula actually pointing out that Venezuela HAS been pursuing these other areas which were wildly neglected by previous administrations. THEY were the ones who expected to reap the oil profits and business from foreign companies after selling the resources for "sweetheart deals" and everyone profiting except the masses of poverty stricken citizens.

As Lula mentioned this entire movement could have happened 20 years earlier in Brazil, it also could have happened far earlier in Venezuela, as well. Only reason it played out that way the oligarchs were making out like bandits, and no one looking out for the interests of the other 80% got anywhere near the halls of power.

Thanks for the suggestion, and a useful headline. Really glad I got back here before the hour open for editing had expired!

[Peace Patriot]

3. Definitely worth quoting the rest of it...

(Lulu) "And, I would say, now we are getting to another phase, which is achieving independence from our own blindness, since we passed a long time without seeing ourselves, without discovering the potential of political, cultural, commercial connections between us.

"I believe that what matters is the beginning, in other words, I was telling comrade Chavez, that oil is a fantastic thing. Because it is very easy money and often whoever has much money is like someone who went to play in a casino, the person wants to win more and more and, suddenly, he loses everything.

"History is full of examples that oil, by itself does not solve the problems of a country. In other words, a country, will have much more peace when it is industrialized and when it has food security. Every country has to produce its own corn, its soy, its bean, its tomato, its onion, raise its cattle, produce its meat and industrialize that.

"And I get very happy, Chavez, because I realize that this is happening in a very fast way here, in Venezuela. I am 64, I have another year in office. In ten years whoever is alive will see a new Venezuela, putting together the large oil production, the large industrialization and the large food production. A country needs all of this to build itself and to become definitively independent."

The Venezuelan leader, on the other hand, talked about how sure he feels that his country will be now approved by the full Brazilian senate. "This is not a whim. It is a destiny. (This) is a sound integration and a true unity. We're talking about a big step. In the end, Lula, you know that Venezuela is as yours as Brazil is."

Chavez also compared Lula to Jesus Christ: "President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva came as Christ, announcing the good news. It is beneficial to all to create a large market for South America. Mercosur is going to become a new hub of economic power."

Lula seemed all excited about his visit to the soy field in the El Tiger region. He emphasized that Brazil is not "selling soy" but transferring technology. Lula explained that he got technical information on how to best use the planted area. According to the Embrapa (Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation) Venezuela will be able to double its soy production by adding limestone to its soil.

http://www.brazzilmag.com/content/view/11380

---------------------------------

Solidarity, cooperation, friendship, having each other's backs, "raising all boats," building something together, sharing knowledge, reaching back to the roots of the Bolivarian Revolution, Bolivar's dream of a united South America, creating a vision for the future--this is what is happening in South America. Not "dictatorship." Not "tyranny." Not "communism." Nothing to be afraid of. Friendship, cooperation. We can learn from this to restore our own society's energy and creativity.

[Judi Lynn]

5. I've heard older people discussing their perception that Americans had a great unity

during the Second World War, a sense of everyone pulling together to get through rationing, short supplies, shared fears about loved ones in the military, hoping moment to moment for good news, etc.

From the more respectable info. we get, it does sound as if there is a real sense of purpose among the "pure of heart" in Latin America, a feeling of hope, community, as the regions moves toward real integration. They have the shared experience which brings a feeling of unity WITHOUT GOING TO WAR! Far more positive when constructive, enduring progress is being made.

It would be wonderful to see this building here, but it will take a real awakening, and that looks more possible now than it has in a very long time.

[Braulio]

6. This is cold blooded quest for profits

Don't be naive, the Brazilian business community is pressing for Lula (not Lulu, by the way), to serve as an ambassador for their business interests. They realize Venezuelan industry is gradually losing capability as middle class Venezuelans flee the country, and/or Venezuelan companies are nationalized (and therefore lose their capacity to get much done).

Odebretch, the giant Brazilian engineering and construction firm, has been getting large contracts in Venezuela. This allows them to put their engineers and construction machinery to work, and the other Brazilian companies see an opportunity they don't want to miss. Lula is very sharp, he sucks up to Chavez, knowing very well Brazil is a lot more powerful and important than Venezuela, and works to get business for his PRIVATE corporations. :-)

[spanza]

8. Kind of

"Lula makes a move for the Brazilian industrial elite who's been asking for this"

Interesting to see how Ledezma intervened in favor of Venezuela's entry 1 day before the Brazilian Senate accepted it.

Interesting as well how the opposition for the entry was coming from Lula's coalition and not only from the right wing.

For a sequence, you can check:
http://english.eluniversal.com/2009/10/30/en_ing_esp_brazilian-senate-oka_30A2978251.shtml

Now, let's see what Paraguayan Senate says.

[Judi Lynn]

7. Venezuela, Brazil seal accord on oil refinery

Venezuela, Brazil seal accord on oil refinery
Irish Sun
Saturday 31st October, 2009
(IANS)

Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and his Brazilian counterpart Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva signed more than a dozen accords here, including a significant pact on a joint venture for a oil refinery.

The two leaders met Friday at a soy plantation in eastern Venezuela for their seventh quarterly review of bilateral relations.

Topping the agenda was the agreement on operations for the Abreu e Lima refinery, which is under construction in the northeastern Brazilian state of Pernambuco.

Lula and Chavez in May 2009 had expressed their concern over the delay in the negotiations and ordered Brazilian energy company Petrobras and Venezuela's Petroleos de Venezuela SA (PDVSA) to expedite the talks.

The project had been facing delays since its inception in 2005.

Lula said the $12 billion facility will start operations in 2011 as per schedule and will have the capacity to process 230,000 barrels of crude per day.

Petrobras began work on the plant last year, despite the lack of a final agreement with PDVSA, which is to defray part of the construction cost and supply the refinery with crude from Venezuela's Orinoco oil belt.

Executives from PDVSA and Petrobras signed several other agreements at Friday's meeting, including one that calls for the Brazilian firm to assist the Venezuelans in getting more oil out of mature fields in Lake Maracaibo.

Venezuela is world's fifth largest oil producer and also a key supplier to the US, while Brazil has recently discovered vast new offshore reserves with the potential to make it an energy superpower.

The talks in El Tigre also resulted in accords on joint projects to manufacture television sets and cell phones.

The two leaders began the day with a tour of a new agricultural training facility set up with help of Brazilians.

They also paid homage to the Brazilian independence hero Jose Inacio Abreu e Lima, but the ceremony was interrupted by torrential rains.

http://story.irishsun.com/index.php/ct/9/cid/2411cd3571b4f088/id/560489/cs/1/

[Braulio]

9. Shifting Circumstances

When PDVSA and Petrobras agreed to invest jointly in the Pernambuco refinery, Petrobras was interested in investing in the Orinoco oil belt. Thus the deal was structured to tie PDVSA into a Brazilian refinery, while tying Petrobras into a field development in Venezuela. Since then, Petrobras lost interest in investing in Venezuela's oil belt, and gave up their rights to what was called "Carabobo Block 1".

Instead, they intensified their exploration for new fields offshore Brazil, and together with multinationals proceeded to discover the super giant "Tupi" field. This is where most of Petrobras' money is going to go now.

When I look at the current deal structure, it seems to me PDVSA is making a poor decision investing in a refinery in Brazil. They have much better places to put their money.