Brazilian Foreign Minister Says "We Have Issues to Solve" with US over Espionage

01/31/2014 - 09h29

Brazilian Foreign Minister Luiz Alberto Figueiredo said on Thursday, in Washington, it is all the "same" after the conversation he had with the United States government defining the discussions on espionage as a "process of dialogues as requested by President Rousseff and President Barack Obama."

Figueiredo met the US national security adviser, Susan Rice, to discuss the revision of rules from the National Security Agency (NSA). He defined the relations between Brazil and the United States as "dense".

"These are important relationships; we are two partners. We have issues to solve. It is all I can say," said the minister, declining to give more details about the meeting.

According to Figueiredo, he must give a meeting report to President Dilma, who will make decisions. " I can not talk about what was spoken."

Information about the meeting was announced before on Wednesday (29) by Folha site. Rice called Figueiredo before the speech in which the American President Barack Obama announced reforms to the American spy program on January 17.

Dilma canceled her state visit to Washington in October after revelations from Edward Snowden, a former NSA employee, saying that the U.S. had spied on Brazil. According to Figueiredo, Snowden was not discussed at the meeting.

COTTON

Figueiredo also met with Mike Froman , the U.S. trade representative. They discussed "the cotton dispute" in which the World Trade Organization ruled that U.S. subsidies to cotton producers were illegal .

The new U.S. farm bill passed in the House of Representatives and now goes to the Senate.

According to the Foreign Minister, different Brazilian agencies will study the new farm bill U.S. to understand if it will meet Brazil's hopes. Figueiredo has not ruled out the possibility of retaliation from Brazil.

"I said clearly to Mike Froman that yes, a retaliation is a possibility for us," affirmed Figueiredo." But we have to take a careful look at this new law."

Translated by SIMONE PALMA

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	Norberto Duarte/AFP
	Figueiredo met the US national security adviser, Susan Rice, to discuss the revision of rules from the NSA