Brazilian President Lula responds to criticism over visit to Putin at parade
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has commented on his visit to Russia and meeting with Russian dictator Vladimir Putin. He said that criticism of his presence at a military parade dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the victory over the Nazis is "political exploitation", writes CNN Brasil.
Opposition politicians in Brazil itself have also criticized Lula for participating in the celebrations alongside several dictators, including Nicolas Maduro and Alexander Lukashenko.
"I don't understand what criticism can be leveled at a country that lost 26 million young people (during World War II) who celebrated the way it was," Lula said.
The Brazilian president called the accusations political exploitation and stressed that the trip to Moscow was important.
"If everything is political exploitation, then nothing can be done," the Brazilian president noted.
According to Lula, his participation in the events does not rule out the possibility of being a mediator in the peace process.
"Brazil's position is very, very, very firm. In other words, whether I come here, whether I go to China, whether I go to Argentina, whether I go to any other country, our position remains the same on what we think about the war in Ukraine: we want peace," Lula replied.
At a press conference before his flight to China, Lula also stressed that the purpose of his visit was to support "multilateralism."
The Brazilian President also reported that at a bilateral meeting with Putin on May 9, he expressed Brazil's desire for a peaceful resolution of the "conflict in Ukraine."
"As long as both sides want peace," Lula said, "I will continue to work and hope for peace and an end to the conflict in Europe".
- The parade in Moscow was attended by, among others, Chinese President Xi Jinping, Slovak Prime Minister Fico, and Serbian and Brazilian presidents Vučić and da Silva.
- In total, the heads of 24 countries visited the Russian dictator, as well as the leaders of the Russian-occupied territories of Georgia – Abkhazia and South Ossetia – and the head of the Palestinian Authority within Israel.