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BRASILIA: Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is set to visit Brasilia on Wednesday for high-level talks accompanied by a huge trade delegation, according to a top Iranian diplomat.
Iran's ambassador to Brazil Mohsen Shaterzadeh said Thursday that 110 representatives from 65 companies representing virtually all sectors of the Iranian economy would accompany Ahmadinejad on his official visit.
"They are entrepreneurs in the oil, gas, petrochemical, agriculture, food, platform construction, mining and auto assembly sectors, among others, and will come to explore business opportunities in Brazil," Shaterzadeh told reporters.
Many of the executives were to meet in Sao Paulo with representatives of Brazilian companies interesting in investing or making business deals in Iran.
Ahmadinejad was also to meet with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, but the two leaders were not expected to discuss nuclear energy, Shaterzadeh said.
Israel, the United States and a slew of Western powers suspect Iran of trying to develop nuclear weapons through its nuclear drive, a charge that the Iranians have vehemently denied.
Lula and Ahmadinejad were expected to discuss boosting bilateral trade, which stood at a relatively meager two billion dollars in 2007 and declined by half last year, with Brazil importing just 50 million dollars of Iranian goods. |
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