Brazil has put into effect a free trade agreement with the Palestinian Authority (PA) that has been waiting for ratification for more than decade, in a show of support for the Palestinian Arab people, Reuters reports.
"The agreement is a concrete contribution to an economically viable Palestinian state, which can live peacefully and harmoniously with its neighbors," Brazil's foreign ministry said in a statement on Monday, according to the report.
It said Brazil, which recognizes a Palestinian state and allowed a Palestinian embassy to be built in the Brazilian capital in 2010, ratified the agreement on Friday between the Mercosur trade bloc of South America and the PA that had been signed in 2011.
It was not clear whether other Mercosur members would follow suit.
The PA envoy in Brasilia, Ibrahim Al Zeben, called Brazil's decision "courageous, supportive and timely."
It is "the effective way to support peace in Palestine," he said in a message to Reuters, adding that he hopes the PA’s trade with Mercosur, currently only $32 million a year, will grow.
Brazil’s move comes amid tensions with Israel’s government following the return to power of President Lula da Silva.
In February, da Silva caused an uproar when he compared Israel’s actions in Gaza to those of Nazi leader Adolf Hitler against Jews during World War II.
"What is happening in the Gaza Strip is not war. This is genocide. It is not a war of soldiers against soldiers. It is a war between a trained military against women and children. What is happening in the Gaza Strip against the Palestinian people has not happened at almost any other time in history. In fact, it only happened once; when Hitler decided to kill the Jews," the Brazilian President charged.
Foreign Minister Israel Katz called the Brazilian Ambassador, Federico Mayer, for a reprimand in the wake of da Silva’s comments and told him that da Silva was considered persona non grata in Israel.
Later, da Silva announced that the Brazilian ambassador to Israel would be recalled and that Brazil has decided to summon Israel's ambassador to the country for a reprimand.
Despite the uproar over his comments, the Brazilian President doubled down on his rhetoric, writing on X, “What the Israeli government is doing is not war, it is genocide. Children and women are being murdered.”