Why choose between United States e China if you can do business with both? In a world increasingly polarized between the democratic West and the "others", often governed by autocracies, there is a country that better than all demonstrates the possibility of a third way, of an equidistant (or equi-close) dialogue with everyone, and of free commercial relations, free from sympathies or geopolitical opportunities. It is the Brazil di Squid, which is part of the G20, is a friend of the US and Europe, but has no problem maintaining very close relations with Russia and China.
A clear example of the strategy of the first South American economy (and eighth in the world ahead of Italy, in terms of nominal GDP) was seen in the last few weeks, when Lula accepted Vladimir Putin's invitation without any problem. Putin in Moscow for the celebrations of the 80th anniversary of the Soviet victory in World War II. The Chinese president was in the Kremlin Xi Jinping and characters of the profile of Nicolas Maduro, the Venezuelan dictator. From the European Union only the Slovak Robert Fico went, who belongs to that pro-Russian minority in a continent that instead is the one that most opposes Putin, through trade sanctions and explicit support for Ukraine.
With Russia the intention of increasing trade relations
Lula's trip has been heavily criticized in his country because Putin, the press notes, "is not only an autocrat and an invader, but a war criminal convicted by the International Criminal Court. Showing oneself as his accomplice is a bad sign for democracy and risks putting Brazil in a bad light in the eyes of the international community." The president, however, claimed the visit to Moscow, to "strengthen and rebuild with even greater strength our strategic partnership. Brazil has political, commercial, cultural, scientific and technological interests with Russia. We are two great nations on opposite continents. We are part of the South of the world and we have the opportunity, at this historical moment, to greatly increase our trade relations."
Words that surely won't please Washington and Brussels, which mainly reproach Lula for his ambiguous position on the war in Ukraine (Brazil is a promoter of the “peace club” with China and India) but which make sense from a business point of view: in 2024, trade between Brazil and Russia reached a record value of 12,4 billion dollars.
The intense commercial entanglements with China
Even more intense are the relations between the South American locomotive and the China. After Moscow, Squid flew to Beijing received by Xi Jinping to remind the world that all of Latin America now adheres to the Silk Road, while many European countries – including Italy – have pulled out, and in times of tariffs it is not a good idea. This is why the Brazilian president is not entirely wrong in going straight for the Asian partner, from whom he obtained during the last visit the commitment of 27 billion reais (4,3 billion euros) of Chinese investments in Brazil.
It goes from the strengthening of the alliance for the electric cars to almost 1 billion euros to produce green aviation fuel from sugar cane, to the entry of the Asian delivery and fast food giants Meituan and Mixue into the Brazilian market. The partnership also includes the opening of a factory semiconductors Chinese in Brazil, agreements in the field pharmaceuticals and the acquisition by China's Baiyin of a copper mine in Alagoas, for a value of 400 million euros. China is already the first market for Brazilian exports, with over 25% of the total. “Chinese demand,” Lula said, “has been one of the engines of our growth since the beginning of the century, and has allowed us to make significant progress in reducing poverty and inequality,” Lula said, who also recalled his country's infrastructural and technological delay: “The Chinese support is essential to get highways, railways, ports and power transmission lines off the ground.”
