London, 7/15/2003 (BBC Brasil/Agência Brasil - ABr) - In an exclusive interview with the BBC in London, president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva explained the way he sees his role on the international scene as "a quest to convince the United States, along with England, Germany, France and Italy, of the need for them to help the poorer nations with social assistance policies."

Lula declared that such assistance was the best way to redistribute wealth and fight drug traffic, organized crime and terrorism. "I am challenging rich nations to see that in order to combat narcotraffic, in order to combat organized crime, in order to combat terrorism, the right thing to do is to promote social programs in the poorest regions of our planet," said the president of Brazil.

As for trade, Lula pointed out that by supporting development in Africa and South America, rich nations would "give their own trade objectives a boost." He went on to declare that he intends to use every opportunity, especially his travels abroad, to promote Latin America as an important market.

Venezuela

In the interview, Lula was asked about the situation in Venezuela. He came out in support of the Venezuelan president, Hugo Chavez, saying that what Brazil wants was "a Venezuela that works out right."

Lula said that democracy in Latin America and Venezuela must be respected. "That means we have to respect the voters in Venezuela. Chavez was elected twice. He got 60% of the votes. If somebody wants to defeat Chavez, let them defeat him in an election," declared Lula. (AB)