“Not only is the complete and unrestricted transfer of technology included in the French proposal”, continued the representative of the Brazilian Government, “but also the possibility of sale within Latin America”.

He was referring to the incipient agreement between President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and his French counterpart, Nicolas Sarkozy, under which the biggest country in Latin America would receive 36 Rafale fighter-bombers manufactured by the French company Dassault.

Part of this multimillion business would also consist in the transfer of technology for the manufacture of the aircraft at the Embraer plant, in the interior of Sao Paolo.

In this way Brazil is looking to boost its military industrial sector with the perspective of supplying Latin America against the menace of new conflict hypotheses set out in the recently adopted National Defence Strategy Plan, approved by Lula de Silva.

(PÚLSAR/ANSA)

*(Translation provided by James Williamson)*