Temer: "Goal is to strengthen historical ties and deepen partnerships"

President Michel Temer said on Tuesday (18 October) in Tokyo, Japan, that he carries a message of "a new beginning for our country" to Japanese Emperor Akihito, Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and the Japanese entrepreneurs he will meet during his official visit to the country.

In an interview with Brazilian journalists currently in Japan to cover the trip, Temer said that the goal is to strengthen historical ties and deepen partnerships between the two countries. “We want to strengthen the idea of the Brazil-Japan partnership. It is not only about bringing new Japanese investments to Brazil, but also expanding the Japanese investments we already have in the country.”

To enhance these relations, the president and the delegation of ministers accompanying him will take the opportunity to present the Investment Partnership Program (PPI, in the Portuguese acronym) to Japanese authorities and business commmunity. Temer recalled that the PPI includes 34 projects in the areas of ports, airports, railways, highways, and oil and gas, all of which will be awarded under concession to the private sector.

During the interview, the President drew attention to the new concession model, which ensures legal certainty and attractiveness to foreign investors. “We will also bring the news that we have absolute legal certainty for all contracts established in our country.”

Temer also announced that he will discuss with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe the possibility of the Japanese government easing (or even removing) visa requirements for Brazilians visiting the country.

He reiterated that the keyword and symbol of his administration is dialogue, be it with Congress or any other sector of Brazilian society. According to the president, this ethos has already generated results for Brazil, such as the recent approval (in the first round of voting) of the Proposed Constitutional Amendment (PEC) establishing a ceiling for public spending increases.

We have already managed to pass much in Congress over these few months, including on complicated issues such as the public spending cap, which was approved by a comfortable majority. This reveals how dialogue has led to great interaction between the government, i.e. the Executive, and the Legislative.”