[www.inewsguyana.com] – The Guyana Brazil ‘workgroup’ today, Wednesday, August 27, held its inaugural meeting at the National Conference center that aims to strengthen military relations between the two countries.
The General heading Brazil’s delegation, Lieutenant Decio Luis Schons said that the Armed Forces of Brazil is looking for a sustained programme of cooperation with Guyana and possibly more far reaching levels of cooperation given the push towards South American integration.
“It’s part of a big and relevant part of integrating South America, of getting to know our neighbors and Guyana has a very special place among our neighbors. For us it’s a country that we don’t know very well, perhaps it’s the difference of Language,” the General said.
He also expressed the hope that this process will see an exchange of army personnel to learn the two languages so as to better communicate and develop a better military relationship more efficiently.
“And I can see many officers who speak Portuguese its good and we are doing the same with the Brazilian Armed Forces”.
He explained that the Armed Forces of Guyana and Brazil have enjoyed stabled relations over the past four and a half decades. This first bilateral defense workgroup meeting is intended to continue that line of defense cooperation and look for additional ways of cooperating.
Chief of Staff of the GDF, Brigadier Mark Phillips, a paratrooper for 30 years, was trained in Brazil. In fact, training of looking Army personnel has been the hallmark of Guyana-Brazil defense cooperation.
Phillips said Brazil remains an exceptional neighbour of Guyana and has helped to advance the armed force’s capacity significantly in a number of areas.
“This meeting of our delegation must serve to sustain our defense cooperation and to contribute to strengthening of the bonds of friendship between Guyana and Brazil and more particularly the Guyana defense force and the armed forces of the Federative republic of Brazil”.
A visit by a Guyana delegation to Brazil in 1968 laid the Foundation for defense cooperation between the two countries.
