Canceled visit

At the end of his Latin American trip, German President Christian Wulff canceled a planned visit on Saturday to the Brazilian steelworks of German multinational ThyssenKrupp after the company announced a major restructuring drive that would cost around 35,000 jobs.

Wulff said he would avoid the meeting due to the "suddenly announced far-reaching restructuring in ThyssenKrupp and its unforeseeable consequences."

Sources said Wulff was annoyed that he had not been informed of the company's plans to spin off 20 percent of its global workforce.

Wulff's cancellation came during the Brazil portion of his Latin American tour that saw pledges made for significant future partnerships between the two countries.

Newly elected Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff, said the time had come for more German companies to invest in the fast-growing economy.

Closer ties

Ties between Brazil and Germany have been getting stronger overall, and in 2012 Brazil will be an official partner country at the CeBIT computer fair in Hanover. Both states are also seeking a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.

Trade relations are also improving between the two countries and Wulff was accompanied by 60 German businessmen and women on his trip.

Economic relations were also on the agenda as Wulff visited Costa Rica prior to travelling to Brazil. Germany remains committed to signing a free trade agreement between the European Union and Central America.

The president addressed only indirectly the long-simmering border dispute between Costa Rica and Nicaragua, which recently flared up again. The stand-off is over the placement of the boundary on the San Juan River.

Wulff commented that Germany "respected the primacy of international law in reaching a peaceful solution to the argument through dialog and cooperation."

The president also praised Costa Rica's commitment to climate protection. He said the country of just over four million was an environmental role model, thanks in part to its setting of ambitious goals to promote renewable energy and rainforest protection.

Talks in Mexico, Wulff's first stop on the trip, also touched on the environment. The president praised the success of the 2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Cancun, saying it was chiefly thanks to the Mexican delegation that the goal of limiting global warming to two degrees was adopted.

He added that Germany would now work closely with Mexico in the lead-up to the next climate summit in Durban, South Africa, in 2012.

Security Council disagreement

However, Mexico and Germany differed in the issue of the UN Security Council. While Germany wants a permanent Security Council seat, Mexico opposes the move and does not want to see any more permanent seats established.

Mexico's drug war was a topic for discussion and Wulff pressed the Mexicans to respect human rights "even in the fight against criminal organizations."

He also repeatedly stressed that Germany was confident "Mexico will ensure public order and the protection of its citizens."

"The fight against organized crime and illicit drug trafficking is a united struggle," Wulff said. "Not least because the demand for drugs is global."

Indeed, the escalating violence in Mexico has worried German investors in the country. Hundreds of thousands of Mexicans are expected to take to the streets on Sunday in a mass rally for a more effective campaign against organized crime.

Author: Enrique Lopez Magallon, Birgit Görtz / dfm, glb
Editor: Kyle James