Brazil’s Lula leads major trade delegation to India

AFP | New Delhi

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1 Brazil’s President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva arrived in New Delhi yesterday, leading a large delegation for talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi including on rare earths and artificial intelligence.

Lula, who is travelling with more than a dozen ministers and a large business delegation that includes top CEOs of Brazilian companies, is also looking to increase trading opportunities with the world’s most populous nation.

“India and Brazil share a close and multifaceted relationship,” New Delhi’s foreign ministry spokesman Randhir Jaiswal said in a statement, with photographs of Lula given a red carpet welcome from his aeroplane.

India, the world’s most populous country with 1.4 billion people, is on track to become the fourth-largest economy. The talks between fellow BRICS members -- New Delhi took over this year’s presidency of the bloc from Brasila -- are also expected to address global economic uncertainty triggered by tariff policies under US President Donald Trump.

Lula and Modi will hold talks on Saturday, as Brazil pitches itself as a global alternative for rare earths in a market dominated by China.

Brazil’s president will first attend a global artificial intelligence summit in New Delhi on Thursday, where he is expected to seek better regulation to stem AI disinformation. Brazil is India’s largest market in Latin America.