JAIR BOLSONARO, President of Brazil, said his country is committed to fighting COVID‑19 and joblessness simultaneously and with the same effort.  Despite coordinated and successful efforts to contain the pandemic in Brazil, some local media spread panic in the country’s population.  Nevertheless, his Administration put in place economic measures that protected the economy including massive individual payments and health‑care support.  The pandemic has revealed the world cannot depend on a few nations for support.  In Brazil, even in the face of COVID‑19, agricultural production never stopped, and the country has continued to feed the world.

Brazil has been the victim of a disinformation campaign against the Amazon and Brazilian wetlands, he went on to say, calling his country a leader in the conservation of tropical forests, accounting for only 3 per cent of carbon emissions worldwide.  Fire outbreaks occur in the same eastern areas of the forest region where indigenous people burn their own lands, he continued, adding that his Administration has zero tolerance for environmental crime.

Operation Welcome in Brazil has received 400,000 Venezuelans who have been displaced and his country has taken part in 50 peacekeeping operations and contributed troops worldwide, he reported.  His Administration is putting behind it a protectionist tradition in favor of trade liberalization.  It is undertaking internal reforms including financial regulation, digital security, and pension, tax and administrative reforms.  As a result, Brazil is the largest recipient of foreign investment, even during the COVID‑19 pandemic, illustrating the world’s confidence its Government, he said.  He welcomed Mr. Trump’s peace plan in the Middle East to resolve the Israeli‑Palestinian conflict and said Brazil continues to pursue close relationships with both Israel and Arab countries.