'Underestimated continent'

The German Foreign Ministry has sponsored a conference in Berlin to increase cooperation between Germany and the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. Deutsche Welle spoke with Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle at the conference on Wednesday.

Deutsche Welle: Why has the Foreign Ministry organized this conference on Latin America?

Guido Westerwelle: Latin America is a very dynamic continent, of strategic importance for Germany and Europe. Latin America is also an underestimated continent, a continent with great potential. That goes not just for economic cooperation, but also especially for political cooperation. New power centers are arising in our changing world, and Latin America and the Caribbean are undoubtedly part of that.

Just like Germany, Brazil is fighting for a permanent seat in the UN Security Council. But Brazil abstained from the vote on a resolution against Syria, and is calling for dialogue with Iran rather than diplomatic pressure. Shouldn't an emerging world power like Brazil stand more clearly on the side of human rights?

Brazil and Germany share not only a common desire for more responsibility in the Security Council, but also a common belief that a nuclear-armed Iran is unacceptable. We also work very closely and very well together in the Security Council on many issues. Simply the fact that Brazil currently plays such a defining role in global politics also shows that the world of the last century is never coming back. Brazil is a power center, a country whose economy is developing dynamically and internationally, and whose political influence is growing more and more.

The very impressive opening speech from the new Brazilian president at the UN General Assembly brought up key issues that we very much applaud. And one can see that our common cultural commitment to identity, to individuality, to human rights and civil liberties also ties us together.

The BRIC countries - among them Brazil - have offered the International Monetary Fund help in dealing with the European debt crisis. How can the BRIC countries help?

We have a debt crisis in Europe, and we are also going to overcome it. And we're happy about the ever-growing economic interconnectedness. Just in the years from 2005 to 2010, trade between Brazil and Germany rose 60 percent. That's three times as fast as comparable regions within the same time frame. And the largest economic entity outside of Germany that is made up of Germans is in Sao Paulo. That alone illustrates that the close economic exchange and the close political cooperation are in our mutual interest.

I as foreign minister of course want to take care of the old friendships and partnerships, the European alliances and the transatlantic alliance. But I would also like us to take the new power centers in the world more seriously. The world as it was when I was young no longer exists. Latin America in my youth was often associated with development aid, and today we see that three Latin American states sit with us at the same level at the G-20. That shows that we in Europe have to change our attitudes, and that we can't lose any time in building new strategic alliances and partnerships. Latin America plays a key role there.

Sao Paulo is the place with the most German companies outside of Germany. In the fields of science and culture, Brazil and Germany have an intense cooperation, and the German-Brazilian Economic Summit is a meaningful forum for this. Do you think that the intense bilateral relations of both countries will be noticed by the general public?

The public and the public discussion are still lagging behind the real situation. We have been looking for a while at Asia and the development there, and have not paid enough attention to Latin America, the young generations there and their aspirations and ascension. When we talk about demographic developments in Germany, we mostly mean our changing age structure and resulting needs for our social security system. When I speak of a demographic development, I mean the demographic development of the world.

A very large percentage of the people in Latin America, especially Brazil, is young. They are driven, dynamic, ambitious, and that's why it is important that we team up and establish close friendships and strategic partnerships based on our common cultural, historic roots. That should be done before the rest of the world, not when everyone else has already figured it out. As my grandmother always said, "Now is the time. No bell will be rung when it's time to get on board."

Interview: Marcio Damasceno / acb
Editor: Michael Lawton