On April 8 and 9, representatives of the foreign ministries of countries bordering the Atlantic Ocean in the Southern Hemisphere will meet in Rio de Janeiro for the 9th Ministerial Meeting of the South Atlantic Zone of Peace and Cooperation (ZOPACAS).

ZOPACAS is a diplomatic mechanism established in 1986 by the United Nations to keep the region free of nuclear and other weapons of mass destruction. The Zone of Peace and Cooperation comprises Brazil, Argentina, Uruguay, and 21 countries along Africa’s west coast, from Senegal to South Africa.

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As has been the case throughout its 40-year history, the country hosting the ZOPACAS ministerial meeting assumes the presidency of the mechanism for two to three years. Brazil will succeed Cape Verde.

With the risk of armed conflict reduced among the 24 countries in the region, the Brazilian Foreign Ministry aims to strengthen cooperation.

“For 40 years, United Nations member states have, by consensus, reiterated this declaration [regarding a zone free of weapons of mass destruction]. However, ZOPACAS is also a zone of peace and cooperation, and this aspect, in our view, has not developed to its full potential,” said Ambassador Carlos Márcio Bicalho Cozendey, Secretary for Multilateral Political Affairs at Brazil’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Documents

According to the diplomat, the countries are expected to sign three documents in Rio: a convention on the marine environment; a cooperation strategy establishing three areas of action (subdivided into 14 thematic areas); and the Rio de Janeiro Declaration, which is political in nature.

Although it is a “political declaration,” Ambassador Carlos Bicalho rules out the possibility that the 30–40 paragraphs of the text currently being drafted will contain references to conflicts in the Middle East or Eastern Europe. “One should not expect statements on all current events,” he said.

The ZOPACAS ministerial meeting, however, should “reiterate and make clear that this is a peaceful region and that the countries of the region themselves are capable of and interested in maintaining it as a region of peace and security” and “prevent extra-regional powers from bringing their conflicts and problems here,” the diplomat added during a press briefing at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Brasília.

President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva is expected to attend the meeting’s closing ceremony.

Italian soccer coach Carlo Ancelotti said on Thursday (Mar. 26), after the 2–1 loss to France in a World Cup warm-up friendly, that the Brazilian national team showed it can compete with the world’s best teams.

“Today’s game made it very clear to me: we can compete with the best teams in the world. I have no doubt. We played against a very strong, high-quality team and competed until the last minute to try to win. I am convinced that we will fight for the World Cup with all our energy,” said the Brazilian team’s coach after the match at Gillette Stadium in Boston.

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At the post-game press conference, the coach made it clear he was not satisfied with the result but highlighted the team’s fighting spirit: “When you lose a game, you should never be happy; we are not. The result isn’t the most important thing, but it shows what we did well and what we didn’t […]. In the overall context of the game, I’m satisfied because the team competed, fought hard, and scored from a set piece, which is important.”

When asked about the possibility of Neymar (who was not called up for the friendlies against France and Croatia) playing for the national team at the World Cup, the Italian stated it is the time to focus on the players currently with the squad: “Now we have to talk about those who are here, who played, who gave their all, who worked hard. I’m satisfied.”

The Brazilian national team will return to action next Tuesday (May 31), when it faces Croatia at Camping World Stadium in Orlando.

After that, Brazil will face Panama on May 31 at Maracanã Stadium in Rio de Janeiro. Finally, on June 6, one week before its World Cup opener, the team will face Egypt in its final friendly before the tournament. The match will be played at Huntington Bank Field in Cleveland.