Ministry of External Relations

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Categories: Foreign relations of Brazil | Foreign affairs ministries | Politics of Brazil | Government of Brazil

Ministry of External Relations
Esplanada dos Ministérios, Bloco H www.mre.gov.br
Established	28 July 1736 ^[1]
Current Minister	Celso Amorim
Budget	$1.9 billion (2007) ^[2]

The Ministry of External Relations (Abbreviation: MRE; Portuguese: Ministério das Relações Exteriores) conducts Brazil's foreign relations with other countries. It is commonly referred to in Brazilian media and diplomatic jargon as The Itamaraty, after the palace which hosted the ministry (originally in Rio de Janeiro, and currently in a second-named one in Brasília). The ministry is currently headed by Chancellor Celso Amorim.

The ministry is headquartered in the Itamaraty Palace, located at the Monumental Axis in the capital city of Brasília.

1 Foreign policy
2 Diplomatic missions
3 See also
4 Notes and references
5 External links

Foreign policy

Image:Itamaraty.jpg

The Itamaraty Palace in Brasília is the headquarters of the Ministry of External Relations

Main article: Foreign relations of Brazil

The primary objective of the Brazilian foreign ministry is to increase the process of regional integration with Mercosul and other regional and financial bodies. It has also been heavily involved in the discussion of important topics on the international agenda including issues such as the protection of human rights, environmental preservation and the maintenance of peace. At the same time, it has strengthened its links with the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries and has structured itself in order to meet the needs and ambitions of day to day foreign policy concerns. Brazil currently maintains diplomatic relations with every country in the world, with the exceptions of Bhutan, Micronesia, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Marshall Islands, Fiji, Nauru, Tuvalu, and Taiwan (Republic of China).

Diplomatic missions

Main article: Brazilian diplomatic missions

Permanent diplomatic missions are meant to carry out representation, negotiation and information activities, as well as the protection of Brazilian interests with governments of other States and international organizations. Brazil has an extensive diplomatic network, consisting of over 250 overseas missions: