Obama: Brazil’s democracy an example for Arab world

RIO DE JANEIRO, (Reuters) – President Barack Obama  said yesterday that Brazil’s emergence as a powerful democracy  was an example other nations could follow, as young people in  the Middle East and north Africa rebelled for greater freedom.

“As two nations who have struggled over many generations to  perfect our own democracies, the United States and Brazil know  that the future of the Arab World will be determined by its  people,” Obama said to a standing ovation at a historic theater  in downtown Rio de Janeiro.

Obama has ordered U.S. forces into the biggest military  intervention in the Arab world since the 2003 invasion of Iraq,  authorizing strikes against Libya on Saturday as he met with  Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff in Brasilia.

“We’ve seen the people of Libya take a courageous stand  against a regime determined to brutalize its own citizens.  Across the region, we have seen young people rise up,” he told  an audience of about 2,000 prominent Brazilians in a speech  that was televised live across Brazil.

“When men and women peacefully claim their human rights,  our own common humanity is enhanced… That is the example of  Brazil,” he said to loud applause in the ornate hall.

Obama also used the speech to stress that the United States  sought a partnership of equals with Brazil, striking a chord  that Brazilian officials were hoping for.

Rousseff took a tough tone during their joint appearance in  Brasilia and dwelled on issues that divide them like trade  tariffs and Brazil’s aspirations for a permanent U.N. Security  Council seat — a desire Obama expressed appreciation for but  stopped short of endorsing.

In Rio the president deployed his formidable rhetorical  skills to assure Brazilians he was not just interested in  taking advantage of their country’s economic boom, which has  lifted more than 20 million out of poverty in the last decade.

“As you confront the many challenges you still face at home  as well as abroad, let us stand together — not as senior and  junior partners, but as equal partners,” he said.