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DAVOS

Why didn’t Lula go to the World Economic Forum?

Davos is the home of the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting. Photo: Sandra Blaser/WEF

During his first two presidential terms, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva attended the World Economic Forum three times, using Davos as a platform to court the global business elite and bolster the left’s economic credibility. This time is different: Lula is set to complete his third term as president without making a single appearance at the Swiss gathering.

Despite a fraught geopolitical backdrop — caused by tariff disputes, the recent capture of Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro by US forces, fears of a weakened NATO and the stalemate over the EU-Mercosur deal (more below) — Brazil’s only representative at the event is Management Minister Esther Dweck, a low-profile technocrat, underscoring how little importance Brasília attaches to Davos.

Dweck is set to sign today Brazil’s entry into the First Movers Coalition, a forum initiative that aims to advance the most critical emerging climate technologies by leveraging members’ collective purchasing power.

Granted, Lula was not alone in foregoing the forum..

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