New Brazilian Foreign Minister is a critic of Trump's victory, sponsors Mercosur, the Pacific Alliance and Free Trade

Foto: Pedro França/Agência Estado

Brazilian President Michel Temer has picked as his new Foreign Minister a man who already has criticized U.S. President Trump. Temer named Senator Aloysio Nunes (71) to the post on Thursday to replace José Serra. Serra resigned last week alleging medical reasons. The appointment doesn't require congressional approval. Both Nunes and Serra belong to the center-right PSDB party, member of the ruling coalition.

After Trump's victory in November, Nunes went on Twitter to call the real estate mogul “the worst” of the Republican Party, “uncontrollable” and “exaggerated.”

A leftist guerrilla when a student who fought against Brazil's military dictatorship in the late 1960’s, (he was forced into exile in France from 1968 to 1979), Nunes is today a strong advocate of free trade and private initiative. He promoted closer ties to the United States as chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, but his initial response to the election of Trump last year was very negative. Nunes was also Justice Minister in 2001-2002.

Nunes is expected to follow Serra's lead in moving away from a foreign policy of alignment with left-wing governments in Latin America followed by the Workers Party that was ousted from power with the impeachment of Dilma Rousseff last year.

“At this moment, in which Brazil is beginning to emerge from a deep crisis, foreign policy can make a big contribution in the economy, in foreign trade, in attracting investments to create more jobs,” he said in a video on his Facebook page.

Nunes said he will work to revive the five-nation Mercosur trade bloc of South America by drawing it closer to the Pacific Alliance countries and concluding a trade deal with the European Union.

Nunes is a senior figure of PSDB party, a crucial ally for Temer's center-right PMDB at a time when the President is trying to maintain congressional support for austerity reforms and to stem the damage from a sprawling corruption scandal that has already brought down several ministers.

Source: Mercopress Agency