In his first meeting with the international press, at Palácio de la Moneda, in Santiago, the newly sworn-in president of Chile, Gabriel Boric, stated that he wants to have a good relationship with Brazil. But he stressed that there are major differences between his government and that of the Brazilian Jair Bolsonaro. "It is evident that we think totally differently from President Bolsonaro on climate awareness and human rights," Boric said on Monday (14). "But the Brazilian people chose him, and we respect that."
Boric also claimed to have an affinity with former president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) and that he invited him to his inauguration ceremony. According to him, the PT member refused so as not to cause diplomatic discomfort with the current government – which, the Chilean added, reflects well on the PT member. Former President Dilma Rousseff attended the event. He also said that he had conversations with PT politicians, stressed that it is necessary to "learn from the mistakes made" and expressed his support in this year's presidential election: "We are rooting for Lula."
The new Chilean leader highlighted that he will not participate in PROSUL (Foro para o Progresso da América do Sul), an alliance of right-wing governments in South America launched in 2019. He also signaled that he would support the creation of blocs only between presidents who have the same ideological profile. His predecessor, Sebastián Piñera, created an alliance made up of Brazil, Paraguay and Colombia.
Translated by Kiratiana Freelon