SOCIETY 368 / 2015

DIPLOMATIE
BRAZIL
H
ow old are the diplomatic
relations
between Austria and
Brazil?
Austria recognised
Brazil in 1825. When
we go back in the history of our relations
we cannot forget about the Habsburg Erzherzogin
Leopoldine, the first empress of
Brazil, who married the Portuguese crown
prince Dom Pedro in 1817.
How are the relations between
Austria and Brazil?
Perhaps the most important aspect is
that we share some basic common values,
like democracy and respect for human
rights. That leads to the fact that we have
a number of common positions in many
international issues, in the United Nations
and elsewhere. An example: Brazil
works together with Austria supporting
Austrian initiatives in the United Nations
to promote the security of journalists
worldwide. The Brazilian community in
Austria is very important for our relations.
It is always difficult to know the
exact number of Brazilians in Austria,
because many have the dual Brazilian-
Austrian citizenship or register here with
a second European passport. According
to Statistik Austria about 5.000 residents
in Austria declared that they were born
in Brazil. A very important aspect of the
work of the embassy is to stay in contact
with the Brazilian community, to provide
efficient consular services.
What are the main projects concerning
economy issues between the two
countries and how is their commercial
balance?
There are a lot of Austrian investments
“We are open
in our DNA”
H.E. Evandro Didonet, Ambassador of
Brazil in Austria, talks with SOCIETY
about the Austrian-Brazilian Relations,
Brazil as multiethnic country and the
upcoming Olympic Games.
INTERVIEW: GERTRUD TAUCHHAMMER
FOTOS: SOCIETY/MIKES
44 | SOCIETY 2_2015