Brazil House Speaker, Top Banks Urge Reform, Slam Tax Strategy
The talks come as the government of President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva tries to plug a hole in the budget with tax hikes, a strategy criticized by Motta, who was elected speaker with broad backing, and the country's top bankers.
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Associated Press
6 hours ago
- Associated Press
To host UN climate talks, Brazil chose one of its poorer cities. That's no accident
NEW YORK (AP) — When world leaders, diplomats, business leaders, scientists and activists go to Brazil in November for the United Nations' annual climate negotiations, poverty, deforestation and much of the world's troubles will be right in their faces — by design. In past conference cities — including resort areas and playgrounds for the rich such as Bali, Cancun, Paris, Sharm El-Sheikh and Dubai — host nations show off both their amenities and what their communities have done about climate change. But this fall's conference is in a high-poverty city on the edge of the Amazon to demonstrate what needs to be done, said the diplomat who will run the mega-negotiations in Belem known as COP30, or Conference of Parties. What better way to tackle a problem than facing it head on, however uncomfortable, COP30 President-designate André Corrêa do Lago, a veteran Brazilian diplomat, said in an interview with The Associated Press at United Nations headquarters. 'We cannot hide the fact that we are in the world with lots of inequalities and where sustainability and fighting climate change is something that has to get closer to people,' do Lago said. That's what Brazilian President President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has in mind, he said. 'When people will go to Belem, you are going to see a developing country and city with considerable infrastructure issues still with, in relative terms, a high percentage of poverty and President Lula thinks it's very important that we talk about climate thinking of all the forests, thinking of poverty and thinking of progress,' do Lago said. 'He wants everybody to see a city that can improve thanks to the results of these debates.' The rich and powerful — as well as poorer nations, activists and media — are already feeling a bit of that discomfort even before getting to Belem. Even with two years of notice, Brazil is way behind in having enough hotel rooms and other accommodations for a global conference that has had 90,000 attendees. The official United Nations COP30 website says Brazil would have an official booking portal by the end of April. But specific plans weren't announced till last week when Brazil said it arranged for two cruise ships with 6,000 beds to help with lodging, saying the country is ensuring 'accommodation for all countries' and starting a system where 98 poorer nations have the option to reserve first. Skyrocketing lodging costs are a problem, do Lago conceded. Some places have been charging $15,000 a night for one person and activists and others have talked of cutting back. But he said prices 'are already going down,' even as local media report otherwise. Do Lago said it will be a local holiday so residents can rent out their homes, adding 'a significant supply of apartments.' Big year for climate negotiations This is a significant year for climate negotiations. The 2015 Paris climate agreement required countries to come up with their own plans to reduce the emissions of heat-trapping gases from the burning of coal, oil and natural gas and then to update those plans every five years. This year nearly every nation — the United States, the No. 2 carbon dioxide emitter and historically biggest polluter, withdrew from the accord earlier this year — has to submit their first plan update. Most of those updates are already late, but the United Nations wants countries to complete them by September when world leaders gather in New York. That would give the United Nations time to calculate how much they would curb future climate change if implemented — before the COP six weeks later. UN Secretary-General Antonio-Guterres, in an interview with AP, reiterated what officials want in those plans: that they cover each nation's entire economy, that they include all greenhouse gases and that they are in line with efforts to limit long-term human-caused warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius (2.7 degrees Fahrenheit) since pre-industrial times. That target is the Paris agreement goal. And it's tough since the world is only a couple of tenths of a degree away and last year even temporarily shot past the 1.5 degree mark. Do Lago said he expects the countries' plans will fall short of keeping warming below the 1.5 degree mark, so tackling that gap will be a crucial element of negotiations. Some big things aren't on agenda, like $1.3 trillion for poorer nations Some of the negotiations' most important work won't be on the formal agenda, including these plans, do Lago said. Another is a road map to provide $1.3 trillion in financial help to poorer nations in dealing with climate change. And finally, he said, Brazil 'wants very much to talk about nature, about forests.' The nearby Amazon has been an important part of Earth's natural system to suck large amounts of carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere, but deforestation is a major threat to that. At times, parts of the Amazon have gone from reducing carbon dioxide in the air to increasing it, a 2021 study found. On Wednesday, the United Nation's top court ruled that a clean and healthy environment is a basic human right, a decision that may bolster efforts to come up with stronger action at the November climate conference, some activists said. 'Failure of a state to take appropriate action to protect the climate system ... may constitute an internationally wrongful act,' court President Yuji Iwasawa said during the hearing. Do Lago said the challenge for countries is to think of these emission-reduction plans not as a sacrifice but as a moment to change and grow. 'One of the objectives of this COP is that we hope we will be remembered as a COP of solutions, a COP in which people realized that this agenda is creating more opportunities and challenges,' do Lago said. ___ The Associated Press' climate and environmental coverage receives financial support from multiple private foundations. AP is solely responsible for all content. Find AP's standards for working with philanthropies, a list of supporters and funded coverage areas at
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Yahoo
OJ maker sues Trump over Brazil tariffs saying his plan could drive up consumer costs by 25%
A New Jersey-based orange juice manufacturer has announced that it is suing Donald Trump's administration over the president's threatened 50 percent tariffs on Brazil, a country whose citrus exports it depends on. Johanna Foods warns that Trump's blanket levy, due to take effect on August 1, could result in a $70 million hit to its business, leading to likely layoffs and a 25 percent increase in the price of orange juice on supermarket shelves. The company said that it and its subsidiary, Johanna Beverage Company, supply nearly three-quarters of private-label, not-from-concentrate orange juice consumed in the United States. They supply a number of major mass grocery retailers, including Aldi, Walmart, Sam's Club, Wegman's, Safeway, and Albertsons. Trump's tariff would represent a particular blow because, by the Department of Agriculture's own estimate, Brazil supplies more than half of the orange juice on shelves in American stores, and 80 percent of the global total. White House spokesperson Kush Desai told The Independent: 'The administration is legally and fairly using tariff powers that have been granted to the executive branch by the Constitution and Congress to level the playing field for American workers and safeguard our national security.' Johanna argues in its lawsuit that Trump's threat against Brazil, revealed in a letter sent to the country's president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on July 9, was not a formal executive order and did not provide any legal basis for the action. The president followed up his letter by alleging on Truth Social that President Lula had engaged in a 'Witch Hunt that should end IMMEDIATELY!' after charges were brought against his right-wing predecessor, Jair Bolsonaro, a friend of the American who has been nicknamed the 'Trump of the Tropics' and who has been accused of plotting a coup. Lula responded angrily on X with a vow to reciprocate with tariffs of his own on American imports, writing: 'Brazil is a sovereign nation with independent institutions and will not accept any form of tutelage. 'Any measure to increase tariffs unilaterally will be responded to in light of Brazil's Law of Economic Reciprocity.' Trump's economic adviser, Kevin Hassett,struggled to explain the tariffs in an interview with Jonathan Karl on ABC News earlier this month, saying: 'The bottom line is the president has been very frustrated with negotiations with Brazil and also with the actions of Brazil. In the end, though, you know, we're trying to put America first.' Karl argued that the Bolsonaro case before the Brazilian Supreme Court was irrelevant to the U.S. national interest and left the adviser floundering by asking: 'On what authority does the president have to impose tariffs on a country because he doesn't like what that country's judicial system is handling a specific case?' Even before the tariffs have been enacted, Trump's threats have had an adverse impact on the South American nation's citrus belt, where orange prices have already dropped to $8 a box, about half of what they were in July 2024, according to the University of Sao Paulo's Cepea index. 'You are not going to spend money to harvest and not have anyone to sell to,' dismayed Minas Gerais farmer Fabricio Vidal told Reuters.
News24
5 days ago
- News24
Jair Bolsonaro rejects Brazil judge's jail threat: ‘What matters to me is God's law'
Brazilian judge Justice Alexandre de Moraes threatened to imprison former president Jair Bolsonaro. He argued a speech by Bolsonaro posted online violated his social media ban. The Trump administration imposed visa restrictions on Moraes over his conduct in the case. A Brazilian Supreme Court judge has threatened former president Jair Bolsonaro with imprisonment, arguing that the sharing of a speech of his by online users was a 'violation' of a social media ban, according to a document accessed by AFP on Monday. The far-right former president, who is accused of attempting a 'coup' against his successor Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, made a speech on Monday that quickly went viral on social media. Bolsonaro did not post the speech from his own account, although his sons and political allies did so. Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes - with whom Bolsonaro has clashed often - displayed posts from accounts on X, Instagram, and Facebook with videos, images, and text from Bolsonaro's speech to journalists in Congress. According to Moraes, the 70-year-old former president 'delivered a speech to be shown on digital platforms'. READ | US to probe Brazil over 'unfair trading practices', Trump demands end to Jair Bolsonaro trial Bolsonaro is required to wear an electronic ankle bracelet in connection with the case, and to comply with other measures, including a ban from posting on social media. Moraes called on the former leader's lawyers to provide clarification within 24 hours 'on the breach of the precautionary measures imposed, under penalty of immediate imprisonment'. In an earlier decision on Monday, Moraes had warned that any dissemination of Bolsonaro's public speeches on social media platforms would constitute a violation of the measures. Bolsonaro, however, denounced the move as an act of 'cowardice'. He appeared before the cameras to show, for the first time, the electronic ankle monitor he wears on his left foot. This is a symbol of the utmost humiliation. Jair Bolsonaro 'What matters to me is God's law,' he added, rejecting the court's rulings. US President Donald Trump, who counts Bolsonaro among his allies, has waded into the controversy, accusing the Brazilian authorities of conducting a 'witch hunt'. His administration has imposed visa restrictions on Moraes over his conduct in the case, and announced 50% tariffs on Brazilian imports unless the charges are dropped. Eduardo Bolsonaro, one of the former president's sons, stepped down from his position as a congressman in March and moved to the US, where he is campaigning for the Trump administration to intercede on his father's behalf. Moraes believes Bolsonaro and his son seek to 'subject the functioning of the Supreme Court (of Brazil) to the control of the United States'. Among the restrictions imposed on Bolsonaro is an order not to approach embassies or the governments of other countries. He must also remain at home at night and on weekends, although he denied any plans to flee Brazil.
