Maria Malmer Stenergard visits Latin America
Published
In turbulent times, Sweden’s ties with the countries of Latin America become all the more important. Sweden has extensive interests in the region and is engaged in several forms of close cooperation that the Government intends to further solidify, not least with Brazil and Colombia. The visit also gave Minister of Foreign Affairs Maria Malmer Stenergard the opportunity to emphasise the importance of continued support to Ukraine during talks with her Latin American counterparts.
Enhanced cooperation with Brazil
Ms Malmer Stenergard travelled first to the Brazilian capital city of Brasilia, where she met with Minister of Foreign Affairs Mauro Vieira. Her visit also highlighted the 200th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Sweden and Brazil. As one of the world’s largest democratic countries, Brazil is a rising global player and Sweden’s largest trade partner in Latin America, which further underscores the value of close and long-term bilateral cooperation between the countries.
In connection with their meeting, Ms Malmer Stenergard and Mr Vieira signed an updated bilateral action plan for the Brazil-Sweden strategic partnership. It outlines closer cooperation in a number of areas, including trade, innovation, research and higher education, defence, law enforcement and environmental issues.
Ms Malmer Stenergard also met with Brazil’s Minister of Communications Frederico de Siqueira Filho. Brazil is undergoing a rapid digital transition and has a great interest in Swedish solutions and innovations.
Presidential inauguration and stronger ties with Colombia
From Brasilia, Ms Malmer Stenergard travelled to Cali, Colombia, where she attended the presidential inauguration of Mr de la Espriella. In conjunction with the visit, she took part in bilateral meetings with several representatives of Colombia’s new Government, thus reaffirming the strong bilateral relations between Sweden and Colombia.
While in Cali, Ms Malmer Stenergard also participated in bilateral talks with government representatives and ministers from countries such as Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Curaçao, Israel, Morocco, Panama, Peru, Portugal, Spain and the United Arab Emirates, as well as with representatives from the United States.
