"Because
of our defense of positions of a despotic regime, which is cruel in its
persecution of minorities and its opposition, we have picked a fight with one
of our most important global partners, the United States - which remains by far
the greatest power on earth."
The clandestine Iranian
nuclear program has become Brazil's international workhorse. It's an
issue that undoubtedly projects us around the world. And this projection benefits the country, the
aspirations of which to have a greater voice on the global scene isn't only justified,
it adds value and strengthens the Brazil brand. But is the defense of Iran
the best way to do so? The downside of this alignment with Tehran is great:
1) Our diplomacy is in great jeopardy
of being used by the Islamo-fascist regime, which has shown a recurring pattern
of concealment and manipulation on the nuclear issue. An agreement similar to
the one announced by Lula in Tehran had already been accepted by Iran in talks
with the major powers, only to be discarded. Almost no one doubts that Iran
wants The Bomb, while Brazil has always been pacifist. Have we changed?
2) Because of our defense of positions
of a despotic regime, which is cruel in its persecution of minorities and its
opposition, we have picked a fight with one of our most important global
partners, the United States - which remains by far the greatest power on earth.
And the same can be said of other traditional and important Brazil allies, such
as France and Germany, which are both very engaged in the Iranian issue.
The rationale presented by
the Lula government on the Iranian issue disintegrates into thin air. Brazilian
authorities refuse to admit the obvious: that the Iranian program is illegal
and that the country has no credibility precisely because it has always lied
about its nuclear ambitions.
Posted
by WORLDMEETS.US
Presidents
Lula of Brazil and Ahmadinejad of Iran:
This denial of reality
suggests more than naiveté on the part of our diplomats. It also demonstrates
an uncontrollable need for self-affirmation and confrontation with regard to
our American friends - a revived third-worldism that no longer has a place in
the 21st Century.
The U.S. and Brazil are the
two giants of the Americas, with affinities and convergences that are
potentially far greater than their differences.
The election of Barack Obama
created a huge opportunity to take bilateral relations to a new level, consistent
with the emergence of Brazil as a power: one based on mutual respect and with a
common agenda on democracy, the defense of human rights and economic stability.
But in no time at all, relations
have soured, not only because of the juvenile outbursts of self-affirmation
from the emerging Brazilian power, but also because of the resistant arrogance
of the American empire, both in business and politics.
Posted
by WORLDMEETS.US
We would gain much if this
relationship with the U.S. matured and transformed itself, adapting to the new
realities in both countries. However much we may deny it, we share important
common values with the United States. Together, our two countries can form a very
constructive pairing in this emerging new world.
It
would be much better to see Lula shaking hands with Obama than with
Ahmadinejad.
SérgioMalbergier is the editor of the Money section of the
Folha de S. Paulo. He was the editor of the World section (2000-2004),
a correspondent in London (1994) and sent as a special correspondent to
countries like Iraq, Israel and Venezuela, among others. He has directed two
short films, AÁrvore [The
Tree] (1986) and Carô no Inferno [Carô in Hell] (1987). He writes for Folha Online
on Thursdays. E-mail:smalberg@uol.com.br
