The 7th of September this year is full of history. It’s 200 years of Brazil independent from Portugal, a motto that is guiding the civic-military parade on the Esplanada dos Ministérios, in Brasília, next Wednesday (7), in the morning.
The Brazilian Navy, as is traditionally the case, is one of the Armed Forces participating in the parade. Details were anticipated by Rear Admiral Gustavo Calero Garriga Pires, Commander of Maritime Operations and Protection of the Blue Amazon, this Sunday’s interviewee on the program Brazil on the agendagives TV Brazil.
Rear Admiral Gustavo Calero Garriga Pires highlighted the Naval parade of the Navy, in Rio de Janeiro. “We will also have, on this September 7th, a naval parade with our ships from the Brazilian fleet and war ships from friendly navies, who were invited to the celebration. The naval stop will take place on the same day on the coast of the city of Rio de Janeiro, starting in the early morning, at Recreio dos Bandeirantes, and continuing along the coast to Leme” beach.
blue amazon
In addition to the Navy’s participation in the celebrations of the 200th anniversary of the Independence of Brazil, Rear Admiral Gustavo Calero Garriga Pires detailed, during the Brazil on the agendaBrazil’s request, with the UN Continental Shelf Boundaries Council, to expand the extent of the Blue Amazon.
Rich in natural and mineral resources such as pre-salt oil, the Blue Amazon resembles a “frame” of the Brazilian coast, towards the Atlantic Ocean. However, this “frame” currently has 3.5 million square kilometers (km²) and the Brazilian government wants to add another 2.2 million km² to the marine space, a claim that, if accepted by the United Nations, will increase Brazilian jurisdiction over a maritime region of 5.7 million km².
“We are talking about dimensions that normally, with a few exceptions, go around 400 kilometers from the coast. So, counting from the coast, that’s basically it, the geographic space in which we consider, which we call the Blue Amazon, full of riches, full of possibilities. If we count it from the economic point of view and from several other points of view as well, it is an unparalleled wealth for our country.”
The expansion of the Blue Amazon may have economic impacts for Brazil that go beyond hydrocarbons, in this case, pre-salt oil. According to the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), economic activity at sea will generate US$ 3 trillion and generate more than 40 million jobs in the world by 2030. But the management of this maritime area also brings challenges and threats for the Brazilian Navy, as reported by Rear Admiral Calero Garriga Pires.
“We have identified cyber threats that can interfere, for example, with maritime traffic, terrorism itself. Remember that we have critical critical infrastructure in our Blue Amazon. Illegal access to biodiversity, the environment is a major concern of ours. So there are effectively a series of threats, and the Navy works day and night, 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to live up to those threats and counter them”.
operations
still for the Brazil on the agendathe commander of Maritime Operations and Protection of the Blue Amazon, Gustavo Calero Garriga Pires, spoke about the rescue and rescue of people and the interoperability actions with other security structures on the coast of the country.
According to Calero Garriga Pires, about 300 people have already been rescued this year in search and rescue actions along the Brazilian coast. Joint operations are also showing results, such as the seizure of drugs carried out by the Navy and the Federal Police, on August 19, on the coast of Ceará.
˜On the coast of Ceará, a warship of the Brazilian Navy intercepted a vessel flying the Brazilian flag that had more than a ton of cocaine base paste with Federal Police agents on board, that is, we developed our operation together, in this case, with the Federal Police in order to curb international drug trafficking.˜
O Brazil on the agenda with Rear Admiral Gustavo Calero Garriga Pires will air this Sunday (4th), at 10:30 pm, here on TV Brazil.
