Brazilian Foreign Minister in Washington

With only two weeks to go until presidential elections in the US, Brazil’s Foreign Minister, Antonio Patriota, is in Washington for the Global Partnership Dialogue Brazil – United States meeting. He will have conversations with Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, the Secretary for Homeland Security, Janet Napolitano, and National Security advisor, Thomas Donilon.

Patriota will discuss partnerships in the areas of education, science, technology and innovation, as well as social inclusion (poverty reduction) and combating discrimination.

Representatives of both countries say they will continue discussions on the elimination of visas for Brazilians visiting the US. It is believed further negotiations will be necessary on this matter before visas are completely eliminated.

Trade will also be on the agenda. In 2011, Brazil exported goods worth $25.8 billion to the US, an increase of 33.7%, compared to 2010. At the moment, the US is the second biggest market for Brazil exports, buying slightly over 10% of all Brazilian exports.

The US also has the largest amount of foreign direct investments in Brazil, some $104 billion. Half of that, $55.4 billion, came to Brazil in the last decade (between 2001 and 2011).