Bolsonaro's visit to strengthen ties

Jair Bolsonaro's remarks during his presidential campaign last year raised some eyebrows in China. But once he was sworn in as Brazil's President, the Brazilian government began signalling that it was keen to improve relations with China.

These signals came thanks to the revitalization of the Sino-Brazilian High-Level Commission (Cosban). After Brazilian Vice-President Hamilton Mourao met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in Beijing in May, the message of a renewed interest in strengthening bilateral relations became clearer. And Cosban, observers say, will play an important role in deepening bilateral ties in a number of areas.

Now, Bolsonaro himself is on a three-day visit to China from Thursday as part of a series of visits to countries in Asia and the Middle East. The underlying message is, of course, one of renewing the Brazilian diplomatic tradition as a "global trader", and welcoming more foreign investment.