Agreement to Promote Workers' Rights and Climate Cooperation
Lula Strengthens US-Brazil Ties with 'Tailored Agenda'
U.S. President Joe Biden and Brazilian President Luiz In?cio Lula da Silva have agreed to strengthen cooperation to promote workers' rights and address the climate crisis.
The two leaders held a summit on the 20th (local time) in New York during the United Nations General Assembly and signed a partnership for workers' rights.
Through this, they plan to enhance joint actions such as job creation through energy transition and education on workers' labor rights. In particular, they agreed to cooperate to guarantee workers' rights and job stability by utilizing digital platforms such as transportation services and delivery applications (apps).
President Biden stated, "The two largest democracies in the Western Hemisphere stand for human rights," adding, "This includes workers' rights."
President Lula said that democracy is under threat worldwide and added, "Our new initiative will help bring hope to workers' families." He continued, "I hope the two countries treat each other like friends in pursuing common goals," emphasizing, "The equal partnership we are building here opens a new era in the relationship between our two countries."
The initiatives between the two countries are reported to include issues such as forced labor, child labor exploitation, and workplace discrimination against women and sexual minorities.
This summit took place amid Brazil's moves to maintain close ties with China, a major trading partner. Earlier, in April, President Lula led a large delegation of business leaders to visit China and agreed with President Xi Jinping to strengthen multilateralism. This is just two months after his summit with President Biden in Washington, D.C. in February.
Because of this, some analysts suggest that by presenting an agenda tailored to President Lula, a former union leader, at this summit, President Biden showed an intention to more closely align Brazil with the United States.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
