Ex-President of Brazil Rousseff Declares Trump "Catastrophe for Us"
One more lesson. Now, back to Venezuela. There, Maduro's popularity went up after US President Donald Trump threatened him with an invasion. How should we understand this? In our long release on Russia-24, there is a long version of the interview with, probably, the most eminent Latin American politician, former Brazilian President, Dilma Rousseff. We'll talk about Venezuela later, but first, we’ll show something else.
- Mrs. President, it’s not the first time you’ve visited Russia. Together with your predecessor Lula, you co-founded BRICS. Are there any prospects for BRICS now?
Dilma Rousseff, President of Brazil in 2011 - 2016: "I believe that BRICS is extremely necessary for a multilateral world in which every country, every nation is respected, and such an important initiative as BRICS, of course, has prospects for development. I’m absolutely sure that BRICS is quite a powerful organization, and its potential will increase. And I hope that Brazil contributes to the further development of BRICS. For me, this is one of the most important initiatives of the 20th century, because it united huge countries with huge potential, representing all continents. Brazil in Latin America in both hemispheres, South Africa in Africa, China in Asia, Russia in Eurasia".
- And the Pacific.
Dilma Rousseff, President of Brazil in 2011 - 2016: "Yes, and the Pacific. As a result, this created conditions for such important initiatives as the creation of the BRICS Bank, the Conditional Currency Reserves Agreement as a consequent replacement for the International Monetary Fund. And I want to emphasize the following. It’s very important that the BRICS summit, when it was held in Brazil, united all the countries of Latin America".
- Yes, you organized a meeting of leaders of Latin American countries with Putin.
Dilma Rousseff, President of Brazil in 2011 - 2016: "Yes. And when the summit was held here, Putin gathered all the countries of the Eurasian Union. African countries met in South Africa, and Asian countries met in China. What did this mean? That BRICS doesn’t mean that all the participating countries will be closed to others and focused only on internal problems. In reality, BRICS is aimed at cooperation, multilateral relations, development, welfare, peace, and the creation of respectful relationships between all countries. I want to say once again that BRICS will never disappear".
- The last question. Once you refused to talk to Obama, having learned that he was wiretapping you. And what do you think of Trump?
Dilma Rousseff, President of Brazil in 2011 - 2016: "I think that from the point of view of Latin America, Trump is a disaster. Recently, we saw with what expression of joy he spoke of the solution of the Venezuelan problem by military force and invasion. This would be one of the biggest steps back. I want to draw your attention to the fact that Brazil, Venezuela, Argentina, Uruguay, and all the countries of this continent have been living in peace for more than 140 years, and it’s impossible that this situation changed for the worse, and Venezuela's domestic problems were solved through military intervention. Everyone knows the dire consequences that the use of military force by the US led to in Iraq and Afghanistan. Therefore, I think Trump's policy in Latin America is absurd".
- Mrs. President, thank you very much, very kind of you, I wish you success.
Dilma Rousseff, President of Brazil in 2011 - 2016: "Not to mention what he offers in Cuba. This is a step back".
- Thank you.
As you understood judging by the surroundings, we filmed this interview with Dilma Rousseff in autumn in St. Petersburg. There, the 3rd Forum Russia and Iberoamerica was held this week. The co-organizers are the St. Petersburg State University, the Moscow Academic Institute of Latin America, the Bering-Bellingshausen Institute in Montevideo, and Roscongress. I congratulate our friends on continuation and participation of such iconic figures as Rousseff and, incidentally, her Colombian colleague, Samper.