Brazil is the only Latin American country with which Germany has enjoyed a strategic partnership since 2008. This partnership is principally concerned with further expanding cooperation on bilateral and multilateral issues. The German-Brazilian intergovernmental consultations, which last took place in Berlin in December 2023 and are set to take place every two years in future, are a pivotal framework for this.

Cooperation between the two countries is wide-ranging, covering areas such as energy, environment, climate, science and research, business and trade, defence, labour and social affairs, as well as cooperation within the United Nations and on human rights. With funding from the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development and the Federal Environment Ministry’s International Climate Initiative, Germany and Brazil are working together in particular to protect the tropical forests and promote renewable energies and energy efficiency. Both countries attach great importance to scientific, technological and cultural exchange. The historically significant level of German immigration to Brazil, whose 200th anniversary is being celebrated this year, has had a positive impact on cooperation.

Brazil and Germany are working together on numerous issues on the international agenda, in particular the reform of the United Nations, including the enlargement of the Security Council to include new permanent and non‑permanent members. This also includes cooperation in international climate action and environmental policy, in the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva and within the framework of the G20, in which Brazil is holding the Presidency in 2024.

Brazil is Germany’s most important trading partner in South America. Bilateral trade in both directions gained impetus in the past two decades, with a temporary decline during the COVID‑19 pandemic.

Information about German development cooperation with Brazil can be found on the website of the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.