PRESS STATEMENT

Official Visit of His Excellency Jair Bolsonaro, President of the Federative Republic of Brazil, to the Co-operative Republic of Guyana
May 6, 2022

Joint Statement by His Excellency Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali, President of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, and His Excellency Jair Bolsonaro, President of the Federative Republic of Brazil, on the occasion of the visit of President Bolsonaro to Georgetown May 6, 2022.

1. His Excellency Dr Mohamed Irfaan Ali, President of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana, extended a warm welcome to His Excellency Jair Bolsonaro, President of the Federative Republic of Brazil, who led a high-level delegation on an official visit to Georgetown on May 6, 2022, in response to an invitation from President Ali.
2. The two Presidents and their respective delegations held wide ranging discussions on bilateral, regional and global issues. They reflected on the challenges being faced at the present juncture, including those related to international peace and security and those occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic and climate change, and reaffirmed the importance of strengthened multilateral action in the interest of the peoples of their respective countries and of the wider community of nations.
3. The two Presidents underscored the values shared by the two countries, including respect for democracy and the rule of law, the protection and promotion of human rights and fundamental freedoms, and a commitment to sustainable development in all its dimensions. They further underlined the adherence of the two countries to international law and to the provisions of the United Nations Charter, including respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity and the pacific settlement of disputes.
4. The two Presidents expressed deep concern at the situation in Ukraine and called for a ceasefire, a peaceful resolution to the conflict, and respect for international law, including the principles of non-intervention, territorial integrity and the prohibition of the threat or use of force. The two Heads of State also called for a diplomatic solution to address the mounting humanitarian challenges on the ground. They voiced concern about the economic and social impacts of the situation, including the effects of sanctions, on food security throughout the developing world.
5. The two Presidents reaffirmed their commitment to further strengthen the enduring ties of friendship and cooperation that have subsisted between their two countries and to cement an enhanced partnership for the future aimed at increasing integration, promoting sustainable development, and advancing the wellbeing of their peoples.
6. The two Presidents reviewed the state of relations between their two countries and took note of the progress that had been made in advancing cooperation across a broad range of sectors and issues. They recognised that the current conjuncture, characterised by expanded prospects for economic and social advancement, represented an inflection point and a transformational opportunity for their bilateral relations. President Ali and President Bolsonaro agreed to intensify engagement and collaboration with immediate focus on the following areas:
7. The two Presidents acknowledged the pivotal importance of infrastructure integration to further unlocking the potential of their two countries and the wider region. They decided to establish a bilateral working group with the task of assessing the potential gains of a Boa Vista-Georgetown road corridor in terms of trade and investment flows, as well as identifying possible needs of technical assistance and potential private partners and international financial institutions that could contribute to the initiative. In that light, they also instructed their teams to settle, not later than the third quarter of 2022, the measures necessary to enable the full implementation of the Guyana-Brazil International Road Transportation Agreement. They agreed to advance the process of implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed in November 2020 for the Technical Feasibility Studies for the installation of a fibre optic link between Guyana and Brazil.
8. President Ali stressed that the establishment of a deep-water port in Guyana, linked with a future road corridor, could have a beneficial impact on the development of trade between their two countries and beyond. The possibility of a complementary rail link between the two countries was also raised in this context.
9. The two Presidents noted that unfolding developments in the energy sector in their respective countries provided scope for an expanded bilateral agenda in energy cooperation, including environmental aspects. They acknowledged the valuable cooperation that was ongoing through the exchange of experiences and knowledge. They expressed their interest in intensifying the exchange of information between both countries on the respective national energy plans, the exchange of experiences in regulatory matters in the oil and gas sector, as well as collaboration in the prevention of oil spill accidents. President Ali reiterated Guyana’s invitation for Brazilian investment in the energy sector.
10. The two Presidents ratified the importance of collaboration in the field of electrical interconnection between Brazil, Guyana, French Guiana and Suriname, and encouraged the Inter-American Development Bank to proceed with the new phase of the technical, economic and environmental feasibility studies, under the Memorandum of Understanding signed in 2019 by that institution and the energy companies of the interested countries.
11. The two Presidents committed to broadening the scope and expanding the provisions of the Partial Scope Agreement between their two countries. They agreed on the importance of expanding and diversifying agricultural trade between the two countries. They also agreed to work towards the full operationalisation of the Agreement on Cooperation and Facilitation of Investment.
12. Their Excellencies welcomed the prospect, in the coming weeks, of a bilateral virtual seminar of the business community of both countries, to be coordinated, on the Brazilian side, by the Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil), focused on new opportunities in the oil and gas sector.
13. The two Presidents agreed to pursue greater collaboration in the area of agriculture and food security, through the sharing of information and best practices, enhanced collaboration between their respective research institutions, and the promotion of investment. President Ali invited Brazil to partner in the advance of the CARICOM Agri-Food Systems Agenda with the aim of contributing to enhanced food and nutrition security in the region.
14. President Ali invited Brazil to consider cooperating with Guyana in the development of the bauxite industry in light of the changed energy situation and the importance of aluminium in clean technology applications.
15. The two sides noted the substantial cooperation that has ensued between the two countries in the areas of security and defence.
16. The two Presidents recognised the need for continued enhanced collaboration and dialogue in security issues, taking into account evolving threats posed by transnational organised crime, such as drug trafficking, human trafficking, corruption and illegal mining. The Presidents welcomed the expanded collaboration between relevant security agencies of the two countries and reaffirmed the importance of promoting the exchange of police intelligence between the competent agencies of both countries. They agreed also to explore the possibility of negotiating specific projects related to the use of remote sensing images, as an effective cooperation tool to prevent and combat transnational organised crime in their territories.
17. President Ali welcomed the invitation extended by Brazil for the participation of Guyanese police officers in training activities and in joint operation promoted by the International Police Cooperation Centre, maintained by the Federal Police of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro.
18. President Ali conveyed Guyana’s sincere appreciation for the longstanding support extended by Brazil in the training of Guyanese military personnel. Both sides agreed to finalize the negotiation of the amendment to the bilateral Defence Cooperation Agreement in order to further dynamize their cooperation.
19. The Presidents acknowledged the important role which the border communities of Guyana and Brazil play in the development of the relations between the two countries. They agreed to ensure that the understandings aimed at addressing issues specific to those communities on trade and consular cooperation would be fully and effectively implemented.
20. The Presidents agreed to strengthen the bilateral dialogue and collaboration on consular and migration issues. In this context, they decided to convene the seventh meeting of the bilateral Consular Cooperation Group in 2022.
21. The two Presidents expressed satisfaction at the success of the Brazil-Guyana Technical Cooperation Programme over the years and underlined the importance of giving new impulse to the bilateral cooperation agenda, with the convening of the second Meeting of the bilateral Working Group on Technical Cooperation in 2022.
22. President Ali conveyed Guyana’s sincere gratitude to President Bolsonaro for the generous support provided by Brazil in the area of health, particularly by means of regular donations of medicines and by recently offering the donation of vaccines against COVID-19 and several other diseases. President Bolsonaro also gratefully acknowledged Guyana’s support to Brazil in the combat of filariasis.
23. The two Presidents witnessed the signing of the following bilateral agreements:

• Treaty between the Co-operative Republic of Guyana and the Federative Republic of Brazil on International Legal Cooperation in Civil Matters;
• Treaty between the Co-operative Republic of Guyana and the Federative Republic of Brazil on Mutual Legal Assistance in Criminal Matters;

1. They celebrated also the conclusion of the negotiations, in the context of preparation of the visit, of the following agreements and expressed their expectation that they will soon be signed by the competent authorities:

• Treaty on Transfer of Sentenced Persons between the Co-operative Republic of Guyana and the Federative Republic of Brazil;
• Interinstitutional Cooperation Agreement between the Guyana Police Force of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana and the Federal Police of the Federative Republic of Brazil;
• Interinstitutional Cooperation Agreement Between the Guyana Police Force of the Co-operative Republic of Guyana and the Federal Highway Police of the Federative Republic of Brazil, on Cooperation for the Exchange of Information on Public Security, Prevention and Fight Against Organized Crime.

1. The two Presidents welcomed the outcome of their discussions in Paramaribo on January 20, 2022, with His Excellency Chandrikapersad Santoki, President of the Republic of Suriname. They reaffirmed their commitment to advancing cooperation between Brazil, Guyana and Suriname for the sustainable development of the Northern part of the South American Continent. They commended their colleague President Santokhi for this initiative.
2. At the wider regional level, the two Presidents reaffirmed their commitment to regional integration and to the preservation of Latin America and the Caribbean as a zone of peace and sustainable development. They agreed on the need for further integration of Latin America and the Caribbean, including the pursuit of closer cooperation and exchange of experiences between MERCOSUR and CARICOM.
3. They committed to work for the strengthening of regional and hemispheric institutions, including the Amazon Cooperation Treaty Organisation, the Forum for the Progress and Integration of South America and the Organisation of American States.
4. The two Presidents agreed on the importance of the observance of the principles of peaceful settlement and of territorial integrity, in the framework of international law, in the resolution of any disputes in the region.
5. The two Presidents agreed that every opportunity should be taken to maintain the dialogue between them and their two countries.
6. The President of the Federative Republic of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, expressed his gratitude to the government and people of Guyana for the warm welcome and hospitality extended to him and his delegation during the visit.

Issued in Georgetown on this 6th day of May 2022