– 6th biennial conference hears
TOP military personnel of Guyana and Brazil have agreed to further cooperation between themselves, with a view to providing a range of services to help make the two countries more resilient to the challenges of the economic downturn and the threats to borders and to the Amazon. Speaking yesterday at the 6th Biennial Conference of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) and the Brazilian Military, GDF Chief of Staff Commodore Gary Best said that the conference is being held at a time when relations between the two countries are at their best.
The conference is ongoing at the Guyana Pegasus in the city, and will conclude today. Senior military officers from both countries are participating in the conference.
Commodore Best said that the economies of both countries were experiencing growth and acknowledged that Brazil’s growth was stronger than that of Guyana.
He said that the two countries’ militaries are meeting at a time when the world is experiencing a crisis of keeping commodity prices low. He said that as such, the military is asked to provide its services with a view to protecting what is common to both countries.
“The military must enable infrastructure interconnectivity [among the countries of the region] and foster peace building through the Defence Council of the Union of South American Nations,” he said.
Major General Luiz Paul Cruz of the Brazilian Army said he was pleased that the two countries’ militaries are continuing to work together. He said that the purpose of the conference is to establish higher links between the two entities.
He said that the two countries live daily the challenges of the Amazon region for which the army of each of the countries is responsible. “It requires us to act in an integrated way [with a view to addressing those challenges],” he said, adding that the best way is to work together so that the countries could be protected.
Both of the military leaders acknowledged that over the years, Guyana and Brazil have cooperated in the areas of military training in a number of areas, including technical areas. They also acknowledged that the exchange of information between Brazil and Guyana was good for both defence forces.