Johannesburg — President Lula will hold a bilateral meeting with German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, scheduled for Saturday (11/22) in South Africa, where both will participate in the G20 summit.
The meeting, according to sources at Palacio do Planalto, is scheduled to take place at 2:30pm local Johannesburg time – 9:30am Brasilia time – and will be held in the same place where the G20 summit will be held.
The bilateral meeting between Lula and Merz will take place days after the German Chancellor criticized the city of Belem (Palestinian Authority), the city where the United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP30) is being held, during a conversation with representatives of the German press.
Merz said on Thursday (11/13) that the German journalists who accompanied him at the leaders’ summit in Belém were “happy and relieved” to leave Brazilian territory.
“Ladies and gentlemen, we live in one of the most beautiful countries in the world,” the Chancellor said. “I asked some of the journalists who were with me in Brazil last week: ‘Which one of you would like to stay here?’ No one raised his hand. Everyone was happy to have us back in Germany, from Friday night to Saturday, especially from where we were.”
The German’s criticism sparked a series of political reactions in Brazil. For example, the Brazilian Senate approved a vote to censure Merz on Thursday (11/19), over criticism of Belem.
Lula himself replied to the German. At an event on Tuesday (11/18) in Barra, the Labor MP said Mears “should have gone to a bar in Barra, danced in Barra, and tasted Barra’s cuisine”.
The Brazilian president said: “He will realize that Berlin does not offer 10% of the quality that the state of Pará, in the city of Belém, offers.”
Lula’s other bilateral meetings in the G20
In addition to Merz, Lula is scheduled to hold another bilateral meeting in Johannesburg: with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa. The meeting is scheduled to take place on Friday (11/21).
Lula arrives in Johannesburg around 11:30 a.m. on Friday, local time – 6:30 a.m. in Brazil. The Labor MP will be staying at a five-star hotel in Sandton, one of the most upscale neighborhoods in the South African city.
The Brazilian president is expected to leave Johannesburg on Sunday. Upon his return to Brazil, he will stop on Monday (11/24) in Maputo, the capital of Mozambique, on a working visit that is supposed to last only one day.
The Labor Party member traveled accompanied by a small number of ministers. Only Mauro Vieira (Itamaraty) and Fernando Haddad (Fazenda) will be with Lula during the trip to South Africa and Mozambique.
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