Brazil is one of Slovakia's most important political and economic partners in the South American region. Slovakia's priority is to develop cooperation in the areas of trade, economy, tourism and investment. Mutual cooperation works well in the areas of security and defence. This was confirmed by the Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs of the Slovak Republic in connection with this week's working visit to Brazil by the Interim Minister of Defence, Jaroslav Nad. The extension of cooperation between Slovakia and Brazil in the sphere of defence industries will be the subject of talks between interim Defence Minister Jaroslav Nad and his Brazilian counterpart Jose Mucio slated for Wednesday (April 12) in Rio de Janeiro, where Nad has travelled to take part in the 2023 LAAD Defence and Security expo, TASR learnt from Defence Minister spokesperson Martina Kakascikova on Monday. "Several European countries including the Czech Republic or Hungary have developed diplomatic ties with Brazil via trade ties in defence industries," stated the spokesperson, adding that Slovakia is able to offer several interesting military products to Brazil. According to the ministry, Brazil has continuously expressed interest in extending the mutual military cooperation. "For instance, Brazil expanded its diplomatic personnel in Slovakia and, in 2021, accredited a Prague-based non-resident military attache for Slovakia. The creation of the Brazil-Slovak Trade Chamber in Bratislava in 2017 and the Slovak-Brazil Trade Chamber in Sao Paulo in 2018 also paved the way for the additional expansion of economic cooperation," said Kakascikova. The Slovak and Brazilian defence ministries concluded a memorandum on cooperation in 1997. The two ministers are also set to discuss a potential positive role that Brazil could play in the aid for Ukraine against the Russian aggression.
Source: TASR
