Brazilian Vice President Geraldo Alckmin in India to strengthen strategic partnership

Brazilian Vice President and Minister of Development, Industry, Trade and Services, Geraldo Alckmin, arrived in New Delhi on October 15 to enhance bilateral cooperation between India and Brazil, reports 24brussels.

In a post on X, Randhir Jaiswal, the Official Spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs, stated, “Adding momentum to the India-Brazil Strategic Partnership.” The post emphasized Alckmin’s arrival as a significant step toward solidifying the India-Brazil partnership, featuring images of his ceremonial welcome at the airport.

Accompanied by his wife Maria Lucia Alckmin, the Vice President’s official visit is scheduled from October 15 to 17, during which he will meet with prominent Indian leaders and ministers to discuss areas of mutual interest. On the first day, he held discussions with Defence Minister Rajnath Singh. On October 16, Alckmin plans to meet Vice President CP Radhakrishnan and will separately engage with Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal and Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Hardeep Singh Puri to focus on collaboration in trade, industry, and energy. His visit will conclude on October 17 with a meeting with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar.

This high-level visit follows the sixth India-Brazil Strategic Dialogue, conducted in New Delhi on October 3, where senior officials reviewed cooperation in crucial sectors such as defence, security, energy, rare earths, critical minerals, health, and pharmaceuticals. The dialogue was led by India’s National Security Adviser Ajit Doval and Brazil’s Ambassador Celso Luis Nunes Amorim and covered coordination on multilateral platforms including BRICS, IBSA, and the forthcoming COP-30 climate conference, which Brazil will host in November.

Trade and economic relations are anticipated to be a focal point during Alckmin’s visit. Both nations aim to enhance bilateral trade and minimize dependency on external markets in light of the current global tariff environment. Economic engagement between India and Brazil has been on an upward trajectory. During Prime Minister Modi’s state visit to Brazil in July, the leaders set a target of increasing bilateral trade to USD 20 billion within five years. In FY 2024-25, merchandise trade between the two countries reached USD 12.19 billion, establishing Brazil as India’s largest trading partner in Latin America and the Caribbean, according to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry.

Additionally, Alckmin’s visit will review the outcomes of the seventh India-Brazil Trade Monitoring Mechanism (TMM) meeting, which took place in Delhi on October 7. This meeting, co-chaired by Commerce Secretary Rajesh Agrawal and Brazil’s Secretary of Foreign Trade Tatiana Lacerda Prazeres, focused on trade and investment relations, market access, and the expansion of the India-MERCOSUR PTA.

Discussions also covered potential collaboration in sectors such as pharmaceuticals, healthcare, chemicals, petrochemicals, MSMEs, banking, finance, and internal trade, along with visa facilitation and multilateral coordination. Alckmin’s trip is expected to further deepen the India-Brazil partnership and lay the groundwork for Brazilian President Lula’s upcoming state visit to India next year, continuing the implementation of the roadmap established during the Modi-Lula summit in July.