Japanese prime minister arrives in Brazil
15/9/2004 11:14
apanese Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi arrived in Brazil on Tuesday for
a three-day official visit aimed to strengthen relations with the South American
country.
Koizumi will stay in Sao Paulo on Tuesday and Wednesday, where he is
scheduled to meet with Sao Paulo state Governor Geraldo Alckmin and
representatives of the Japanese community.
On Thursday, Koizumi and Brazilian
President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will discuss a possible free trade agreement
(FTA) between Japan and the Common Market of the South (Mercosur), a bloc
comprising Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay.
Japan is concerned over
the possibility of the South American bloc signing free trade agreements with
the European Union and the United States, which could remove competitiveness to
Japanese products in the region.
The economic stagnation in Japan in the
1990s led to a decline in Japanese investment in Brazil and the rest of the
region.
This is the first visit by a Japanese head of government to Brazil
since the 1996 visit to this South American country by then Japanese Prime
Minister Ryutaro Hashimoto.
From Brazil, Koizumi will travel to Mexico on
Sept. 17 and then to the United States on Sept. 20 to attend the United Nations
General Assembly.
It has been reported that Brazilian President Lula will
visit Japan next year.
Xinhua
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