It is Time for a New Partnership
President Fernando Henrique Cardoso
Arrival Ceremony at the White House
Washington, April 20, 1995

Mr. President,

I know that this is a day for celebration of the friendship between our two countries.

At this moment, nevertheless, allow me to express my deep sorrow for the barbaric act that took so many lives in Oklahoma City yesterday.

On behalf of the Brazilian people, I would like to bring to you a message of our solidarity with the American people and especially with the families of the victims of such a senseless act of violence. Mr. President, in my view this terrorist act affects not only America; it affects all of us who believe in Peace, in Democracy and in Freedom for all.

Mr. President,

I have come to the United States of America with the desire to bring our countries even closer together.

I am convinced that the time has come for us to elevate bilateral relations to a new level; a level that will allow our peoples to make the most of the possibilities for cooperation that exist between Brazil and the United States.

A long friendship unites our two countries. It is a friendship based on a history of shared values and joint undertakings. The defense of freedom has always been the most striking feature of the United States of America. This land welcomed all who came in search of the American Dream, a dream described by Jefferson on the fourth of July, 1776: that all men are created equal, and that they share the inalienable rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.

I myself, Mr. President, sought new horizons here at a difficult time in my country's history. Exiled by a regime that considered a Professor of Sociology a threat, I bore witness to the value attributed to freedom here in the United States. After so many years and so much history, destiny has accorded me the honor of returning to this country.

I am no longer coming in search of freedom. We have restored freedom at home.

I have come as the President of a Brazil whose people have once again found their truest vocation: democracy. A Brazil that is demonstrating its ability to build a free and just society, where people from all parts of the world come in peace to fulfill their desire for a better life. The path we have followed to consolidate democracy has not always been easy. We have needed determination and equanimity.

Today, I am proud to say that my election was the cornerstone of a system in which all sectors of society are heard and where the will of the majority is respected. I represent a movement for change, but I was not the one who initiated it.

Brazilian society has changed. Democratic practices now govern social relations. The election of someone putting forward a new program of transformation followed naturally. I am the President of a country that has been revitalized. A country that is beginning a new cycle of prosperity.

We have defeated inflation, opened our economy, promoted our integration into the global economy, and begun to grow again. The Brazilian people know that freedom is not only political in nature: it is also economic. They know that economic development is not achieved without social justice. They understand that responsible and prudent stewardship is essential to the process of economic expansion.

The people of my country want to experience democracy to the fullest, in the sense that Franklin Roosevelt meant:

" -- equality of opportunity, for the youth and for others;

" -- jobs for those who can work;

" -- security for those who need it;

" -- the ending of special privileges for the few;

" -- the preservation of civil liberties for all;

" -- the enjoyment of the fruits of scientific progress in a broader and constantly rising standard of living;"

When I met you for the first time last December, Mr. President, I knew that hemispheric integration had found a defender equal to the ideals that have always served as its inspiration.

The gathering at the Miami Summit has assured you a decisive place in the history of our hemisphere. Brazil is committed to carrying on the work of the Summit.

We are a Hemisphere at peace, where the highest western values endure and an extraordinary potential for economic partnership exists. There is no other part of the world where shared prospects are so promising.
President Clinton,

You had the boldness to realize that, in an interdependent world, the prosperity of all countries in the region is in your country's interest. More than your vision, your concrete actions have also pointed in this direction.

For our part, the successful MERCOSUL experience has shown us that integration deepens mutual ties and a sense of cooperation and solidarity. We are the largest nations on the continent; we share the problems and virtues of our size; we were shaped by the contributions of the broadest possible range of people.

Democratic values; the advancement of human rights; the awareness that environmental issues should occupy a central place in Governmental actions, and a shared understanding that among the factors of international stability isare a firm commitment to disarmament and non-proliferation as well as the aspiration for closing the gap between the rich and the poor ---all of these are elements of our shared legacy.

We each have our own clear visions of the world. We want international peace and security on a firm basis. Fifty years ago, we fought as allies in the Second World War, in defense of freedom. The vocation of Brazil and the United States is to stand together.

Mr. President,

At the beginning of my remarks, Mr. President, I said that the friendly ties that unite our two countries are of long standing.

What unites us more than the past, however, is the future. It is time for a new partnership. To work together to bring our two countries even closer: this is the challenge that we face. To invite you to accept this challenge together with me is the message I bear from the Brazilian people.