Correspondent (South America)
BRASILIA — The Brazilian government has appointed a new Foreign Minister, Luiz Alberto Figueiredo. He was chosen by President Dilma Rousseff on Monday, after the resignation of former Minister Antonio Patriota.
Patriota’s exit from the ministry is related to the the arrival of Bolivian Senator, Roger Pinto Molina, who had been convicted by Bolivian government for many offences. He was in exile for more than a year in the Brazilian embassy in La Paz. Molina came to the country without authorisation from the Bolivian government through the help of Brazilian diplomat Eduardo Savoy. The episode led to a diplomacy discomfort between the countries.
Figueiredo said during a ceremony at the Presidential Palace, ”The Foreign Ministry is becoming increasingly useful to the government and closer to parliament and civil society. The opportunity to work in Brazil is and will always be a privilege.” He also said that he has accepted the invitation of President Rousseff ”with great honour” and also praised Patriota stating that it is a big honour to succeed “one of the greatest talents” of Brazilian diplomacy.
The Chancellor said that Brazil is a “key player and leader on the international scene” and that “the relevance of Brazil is here to stay.” Figueiredo has been Brazil’s ambassador to the United Nations. The new minister joined the Foreign Ministry in 1980 and in the same year, began acting as an assistant diplomat at the United Nations. During his diplomatic career, he represented Brazil in several international meetings on climate change. Figueiredo led the negotiations for Rio +20 — the UN Conference on Sustainable Development held in Rio de Janeiro in June 2012. The conference produced a document signed by 188 countries that participated at the
Image Courtesy: MREBRASIL (http://www.flickr.com/photos/mrebrasil/7093490819)
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