General Tomás Paiva, commander of the Brazilian Army, is expected to visit China in June this year. According to CNN Brasil, the objective is to strengthen military ties with the Asian country.
During his stay, the soldier has scheduled meetings with the leader of the Chinese Army, in addition to other planned meetings. According to the Army’s advisory, the focus of the discussions will be the exchange of information in the cyber sphere. There is also Brazil’s interest in acquiring heavy ammunition and Chinese armor.
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This visit is part of the context of the rapprochement between the members of Brics, an economic bloc that, in addition to Brazil, Russia, India and South Africa, expanded in 2024 to include Egypt, Ethiopia, Iran, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
The rapprochement with China comes after commander Tomás Paiva traveled to India the previous year. At the time, the Brazilian Army showed interest in a medium-height anti-aircraft artillery system, an Indian-Israeli collaboration.
Army Commander will also go to South Africa
General Tomás Paiva also plans a future visit to South Africa, while Russia is not included in the commander’s travels because of the ongoing conflict with Ukraine.
The trip to Chinese territory will take place shortly after the Brazilian Army’s announcement about the acquisition of 36 armored howitzer combat vehicles — an investment approaching R$1 billion.
Chinese manufacturer Norinco was among the finalists in the tender, but the contract was awarded to Elbit Systems, from Israel. This group was responsible for developing the Atmos system, which received the highest score from the Army Logistics Command and is considered the best in the world in its category.
The barracks’ relationship with China is ancient
Since the beginning of the Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva government, the Brazilian Army has sought to expand business with the Chinese.
In July 2023, for example, the Special Projects Office of the Army started to discuss a partnership with China to produce military equipment in the country.
Among the priorities are anti-aircraft missiles, wheeled artillery, radio communication systems defined by softwareremotely piloted aircraft, three-dimensional radars and tracked war tanks — treadmill that attaches to the wheels in order to increase grip on the ground.
Chinese military visited Brazil
At the end of May, months before relations intensified, a delegation of 20 Chinese soldiers disembarked in Brasília. The group was received at the Army Headquarters.
The members of the delegation are part of the China National Defense University and attended lectures on the strategic programs developed by the Brazilian Army.
The delegation was mostly made up of general officers and also carried out an agenda in Rio de Janeiro. The visit to Brazil was attended by Chinese military personnel from the three Armed Forces and was coordinated by the Ministry of Defense, the Chinese Defense Attachment and the Chinese Embassy.
