President Lula interrupted his speech at the opening of the new integration bridge between Brazil and Paraguay in Foz do Iguaçu due to a sound system failure. The glitch ended the ceremony earlier than planned, with Lula stepping down from the stage visibly dissatisfied. The event marked the release of a project awaited for over 30 years.
In Foz do Iguaçu, Paraná, President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (PT) attended the opening ceremony of the new bridge linking Brazil to Paraguay, connecting the Brazilian city to Presidente Franco on the Paraguayan side. The 760-meter-long bridge aims to handle truck traffic and relieve the Friendship Bridge, the previous sole road connection in the Triple Frontier. Currently, about 400 empty trucks cross the Friendship Bridge daily.
Lula began his speech emphasizing Latin American cooperation. "While, as Renan [Filho, Transport Minister] said, there are presidents wanting to build walls so the poor can't cross to their country, there are people wanting to make war to prevent the other from passing to their side, we here, Latin Americans, South Americans, Paraguayans and Brazilians, we are for peace…", he said, before the microphone failed. There was also a screen glitch. The president tried to resume but failed, and continued speaking to the audience near the authorities. The speech lasted less than 10 minutes, and Lula stepped down to greet sympathizers in the crowd.
Organizers attributed the incident to a temporary generator failure on stage, which was to be replaced, but the switch did not happen as Lula was already wrapping up. The project, funded with R$ 1.9 billion from both countries via Itaipu and the new PAC, was completed three years ago but remained unused due to lacking customs and road accesses. At the event, a new customs office and accesses were opened by DNIT and Federal Highway Police. The initial release will be gradual, only for unloaded trucks.
Attendees included ministers such as Renan Filho (Transport), Fernando Haddad (Finance), and Gleisi Hoffmann (Institutional Relations), plus Enio Verri, Brazilian director-general of Itaipu. Paraguayan President Santiago Peña was absent due to family matters in Asunción. Lula referenced tension with Paraná Governor Ratinho Jr. (PSD) over the East Perimetral: "He could have waited for us to do everything at once, but he was in a hurry, and the truth is he inaugurated a work funded 100% with Itaipu money".
