Brasília - The International Relations manager of the Brazil/US Chamber of Foreign Commerce, Fábio Rua, affirmed that the outcome of the American presidential election will not be detrimental to trade relations between Brazil and the United States.

Rua recalled that Bush, who was re-elected President, signed various important foreign trade agreements with Latin American countries. According to Rua, trade between Brazil and the United States has grown at an 8-10% rate for the past three years. In 2003, trade between the two countries generated a US$ 2.4 billion surplus for Brazil, something that had not occurred for many years.

Senator Eduardo Suplicy (PT-SP) joined the chorus of optimists regarding Bush's re-election, although he said that his expectation was for Kerry to win the election, mainly because of "Bush's rash actions." Suplicy believes that, with Bush's re-election, Brazilian should maintain its "partnership" relations with the Americans.

The researcher from the Brazilian Institute of Social Research, Geraldo Tadeu Monteiro, rejected Rua's position. According to Monteiro, Bush took a unilateral stance during his first four-year term and did not maintain a dialogue with the Latin American countries. For Monteiro, what kept the American president from taking a more radical stand on the war in Iraq was his candidacy for re-election. Now that Bush has been re-elected, Monteiro expects the American president to become "more radical."

Agência Brasil
Reporter: Ándréia Araújo
Translator: David Silberstein
11/04/2004