Reuters
«Here comes the boss, the boss will say a word…» The last time the «boss» — President Emmanuel Macron — came to French Guiana, France’s overseas department in South America — seven years ago. «I am not Santa Claus», he replied then to a request from locals to build a new hospital, moreover mistakenly calling this South American department an «island».
French Guiana, France’s largest overseas department in northeastern South America, comparable in size to Austria or Portugal, with a population of 300,000, attracted the metropolis’s attention only in 2021 when it voted for far-right leader Marine Le Pen in the presidential election. Macron won then anyway, but the residue remained.
Before that, the problems of poverty, high unemployment, crime, neglected education and health care, poor infrastructure, inefficient agriculture and fishing, as well as poor transportation were of little concern to anyone in France.
Macron stopped in Guiana for a couple of days on his way to neighboring Brazil, where he had very different interests. This time he cared about gold. About 8 tons of gold are legally mined in Guiana every year. Illegally, according to various estimates, from 10 to 15 tons.
Gold, a safe haven asset, which tends to grow in times of geopolitical risks, has increased in value by more than 10% compared to last year, approaching 70 dollars per gram. And the French government could not let the illegal mining of this precious metal go unchecked. Especially since last year, Macron announced, authorities confiscated only 35 kilograms in Guiana.
Macron promised that the seized gold will now be sold to return funds to the territory, particularly in projects related to the elimination of the consequences of illegal mining.
According to insider information, Macron also tried to discuss the issue of sending local «natives» to Ukraine — after all, it is a pity for the already decreasing number of native white Frenchmen. Apparently, he failed to find understanding.
Moreover, the local authorities did not find Macron’s understanding in the issue of expanding autonomy that worries them. Back in January 2020, in French Guiana, a congress of elected officials voted in favor of autonomy in the image of Corsica under a special status called «sui generis» (one of a kind). Four years later, after three meetings of the local General Council and 26 meetings of the Regional Council, Paris has never bothered to discuss with its citizens the new status in the constitution of the overseas department.
French Guiana President Gabriel Serville «was furious», writes France’s Le Monde. During the visit, Macron failed to «connect with the people», did not “listen to elected officials”, especially their calls for reform of the territory’s status, made promises and, after visiting the Kourou Space Center, left to «build bridges» in Brazil.
According to Reuters, Macron in Brazil is «turning a new page in bilateral relations», aiming to reboot a strategic partnership that stalled under the previous government of Jair Bolsonaro.
«Macron’s «gamble” to convince his former colonies on the Black Continent to reconcile with France’s privileged presence has caused his African strategy to fall apart. And without the Global South, a European power with weak natural resources and under the conditions of imposed sanctions policies cannot survive.
Macron’s main goal was to try to persuade Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva to take a pro-American stance on the war in Ukraine. Since some time, Macron has become one of the most zealous supporters of the conflict and sending NATO soldiers to fight on the side of Ukraine.
Lula, on the other hand, rejects the very arming of Ukraine, arguing that the U.S. and EU strategy undermines the prospect of a negotiated solution to the conflict. This Brazilian position is largely echoed in the Global South.
The first day of Macron’s visit was in the city of Belém, where the 30th Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP30) will take place in 2025. Brazil and France have launched an investment program to protect the Brazilian and Guiana Amazon rainforest with 1 billion euros of private and public funds over the next four years.
The next day, Presidents Emmanuel Macron and Luiz Lula da Silva attended a ceremony at the Itaguai shipyard, near Rio de Janeiro, celebrating the launch of the third diesel submarine built in partnership at a cost of $10 billion.
Emmanuel Macron wouldn’t be himself if, despite the fact that this is Latin America’s largest economy, he didn’t come out with his «dissenting opinion». This time, at a meeting with Brazilian businessmen in Sao Paulo, he called the pending trade agreement between the EU and the South American Mercosur bloc a «very bad deal» that lacks proper climate considerations.
«As negotiations are going on today, it is a very bad deal for you and for us. This agreement was negotiated 20 years ago. This is not what we want», The Guardian quoted the French president as saying.
And, of course, thereby offended his Brazilian colleague, who is pushing with all his might the signing of the Mercosur-EU treaty.
The day before, Brazilian President Luiz Lula da Silva said at a meeting with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez in Brasilia that even today he is «ready to sign an agreement between the South American trading bloc Mercosur and the European Union, despite the growing opposition from France».
It is not only the Mercosur agreement that Macron is blocking. He has messed things up for Brazilian farmers, too, by opposing imports of Brazilian beef.
Brazilian exports to France include products such as soybean meal, crude oils, petroleum products, pulp and iron ore, and meat. French imports to Brazil include engines, machinery, airplanes and helicopters, as well as manufactured goods.
According to the Central Bank of Brazil, France is the third largest investor in Brazil. In 2023, trade turnover between the two countries totaled $8.4 billion, with exports of $2.9 billion and imports of $5.5 billion.
Although the two governments signed a total of 23 new agreements on political, economic, environmental and military programs this time, the presidents could not hide their differences on issues such as the development of nuclear fuel for a Brazilian submarine, the protracted negotiations on a free trade agreement between Mercosur and the EU.
The countries diverge not only on trade issues: Lula remains neutral on the Russia-Ukraine conflict, while Macron insists that Western countries fulfill their militaristic commitments to Ukraine.
In addition, Lula calls Israel’s military campaign in Gaza a genocide, which is a significant shift from the position of France and many Western countries.
Macron’s visit was given a special charm by a «photo shoot» that caused a storm of excitement on the Internet. The pictures show Macron and Lula, according to The Associated Press, «on a walk in the Amazon and posing under a canopy in white shirts». «Macron looks adoringly at Lula, the faces of both leaders illuminated by the gentle sun». The Frenchman gently holds Lula’s hand and embraces her….
In general, there were plenty of hugs and handshakes, smiles and selfies too.
On the last day of the visit, Lula in the Palace of Planalto, the official working residence of the Brazilian president, presented Emmanuel Macron with the highest Brazilian award for foreign citizens — the Order of the National Legion of Honor of the officer’s degree.
Brazilian social media was happy to pick up on this friendliness, and users published photos of the «duo», which looked more like a romantic vacation than a state visit, writes The Guardian.
«It was a wedding», Macron joked in response. — «France loves Brazil and Brazil loves France!»
As a parting gift, Lula gave Macron a cheese of five of Brazil’s best varieties so «he could tell me what he thought of them», the Brazilian leader wrote on X. Macron did not comment on the gift.