Lourenço Melo
Repórter da Agência Brasil

Brasília – President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has sent a message of congratulations to the prime minister of Japan, Junichiro Koizumi, for his victory in last weekend's Japanese parliamentary elections.

Koizumi visited Brazil in September 2004, and Lula was in Japan last June. According to the Foreign Ministry, the two countries have strengthened ties in the political, economic-commercial and technical areas through the visits by their leaders. One of the most important areas of cooperation, according to Itamaraty, is the use of ethanol fuel for vehicles.

Brazil and Japan have also undertaken "a profound relationship within the framework of the G-4, together with Germany and India, in seeking UN reform and, especially, expansion of the UN Security Council," says a note from the ministry.

Translator: Allen Bennett