As one of the largest democracies in the world, Brazil has also ascended to the world stage as emerging economic dynamo.
On her remarks at the Business Leaders’ lunch in Brazil, US Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Brazil is getting richer, not just because it is growing a middle class, but it is also committed to lifting Brazilians out of poverty, opening doors of opportunity for children no matter who their parents.
She says Brazil’s success story is a model of three strong legs and a very strong stool, fair and balanced, a strong economy translating into shared prosperities.
Brazil has lifted millions of Brazilians into the middle class while maintaining and improving democratic institutions, she added.
In terms with its bilateral relationship with the United States, Ms. Clinton said it growing and getting stronger especially in economic aspect.
In 2011, trade between Brazil and the United States reached nearly $75 billion, much of that in sectors that are driving innovation and creating jobs in both our countries.
She notes Brazilian investment in the United States has grown considerably in recent years, now standing at 15.5 billion, making it one of the largest sources of investment from Latin America.
“So this partnership is already benefitting both countries.” -Ms. Clinton
It was 96 years ago that the U.S. Chamber opened its doors in Brazil, Ms. Clinton added.
American companies like General Electric were just beginning to explore markets beyond America’s border, she cited.
However, a lot has changed in 96 years, Ms. Clinton pointed out.
She states that economic issues have become even more central to their engagement with other countries.
“And increasingly, a goal of U.S. foreign policy is to drive economic growth; drive it for ourselves, of course, but drive it regionally and globally.” -Ms. Clinton
She notes a country’s economic strength in turn shapes its foreign policy and, more broadly, its role in the world.
She cites if economies are prosperous and dynamic, states are able to invest more resources in its own people.
Now certainly the United States and Brazil understand the complex entanglement of all these issues, Ms. Clinton explained.
She stresses that what happens to one country affects every other country in the Americas.
As the hemisphere’s two largest democracies, both countries understand that their values must guide the way they exercise economic power.
“A vibrant private sector and strong economic ties with our partners are good for business, but also good for our people.” -Ms. Clinton
Howeve, for either of the two countries, there is no guarantee that progress or prosperity will continue, she noted.
“It is our job to answer this question: In a time of economic uncertainty and a constantly changing global marketplace, how do we maintain economic momentum and growth that fuels inclusive sustainable prosperity in both our countries?” -Ms. Clinton
Well, a big part of the answer is innovation, she underlined.
That’s why Brazil and the United States are making innovation a key element of their bilateral relationship, she noted.
In January this year, Microsoft opened a new technology and innovation center in Brazil, its largest in Latin America, as an incubator for new ideas, where students, NGO leaders, entrepreneurs can access cutting-edge technology.
One of the first projects to spring from this facility is new software that transforms spoken words into sign language, she cited.
Meanwhile, Boeing is also partnering with the Inter-American Development Bank and Embraer to develop a sustainable supply chain of biofuels for aviation, she added.
Ms. Clinton says American companies are seeking to expand in Brazil and is investing the research and development that will underpin the 21st century economy.
Both countries consider private sector innovation so important because the knowledge and technology developed are not only good for a company’s bottom line, they help them meet the challenges of time: clean energy development, urban renewal, food security, efficient and effective governance, she noted.
“It’s good for Brazil, it’s good for the United States, it’s good for Latin America and our hemisphere, and I think it’s good for the world.” -Ms. Clinton
The United States considers Brazil not just a rising power, but a diverse, vibrant, and democratic rising power.
Brazil is an essential player in a world in which shared global challenges are met with more resilient twenty-first century partnerships.
Brazil matters enormously in the world of the twenty-first century as it recently became the sixth-largest global economy.
In addition, as two of the largest and the most diverse democracies in the world, the United States of America and Brazil today reaffirmed commitment to strengthen and deepen their ties to meet the demands of the 21st Century.
Both countries seek to be a partner, an equal partner, to promote sustainable, diversified, innovation-driven growth that translates into inclusive, long-lasting progress.
US engagement with Brazil centers on how two countries can work together to achieve prosperity throughout the Western Hemisphere and around the world.
Economic, energy, and education cooperation which are just some of the areas in which both countries want to increase investment, not only financial investment, but investment in people, through support for innovation that will bring the next generation of technological advances.
The US has made dozens of dialogues with Brazil to advance US mutual interests especially on economic and financial issues, on energy, on non-proliferation, on science and technology, on racial discrimination, and on global affairs.
A prime area of engagement between the two countries and one that has room for even greater expansion is economic cooperation.
