Speaking in Brasília during the state visit of Cyril Ramaphosa, Lula said countries in the Global South must take greater responsibility for their own security rather than relying on foreign arms suppliers.
“I don’t know if comrade Ramaphosa realises that if we don’t prepare ourselves in terms of defence, one day someone will invade us,” Lula said during a joint press conference with the South African leader.
The Brazilian president called for both nations to combine industrial and technological capacity to build weapons systems domestically, reducing dependence on international defence manufacturers.
“We need to combine our potential and see what we can produce together, build together. We don’t need to keep buying from foreign arms suppliers,” Lula said.
Ramaphosa acknowledged that Brazil currently has stronger capabilities in defence and aviation, but said cooperation between the two nations could create opportunities for knowledge exchange and joint development.
“Brazil is much more advanced than us in terms of defence and aviation,” Ramaphosa said, adding that the two countries had “a lot to learn from each other.”
Defence ministers from both countries were scheduled to meet to work towards a formal cooperation agreement, potentially paving the way for joint industrial and technological projects in the military sector.
The talks come amid growing geopolitical tensions and increasing calls among developing economies for greater strategic autonomy. Lula framed defence cooperation as a deterrence strategy rather than a signal of militarisation, emphasising that South America remains largely peaceful.
“In South America, we present ourselves as a region of peace. No one has a nuclear bomb, no one has an atomic bomb. So we think of defence as deterrence,” he said.
Both Brazil and South Africa are key members of the BRICS grouping, alongside China, Russia, and other emerging economies. The bloc has increasingly positioned itself as a platform for Global South cooperation in trade, development, and security.
Their discussions also unfolded against a backdrop of heightened tensions involving the United States and its allies. Lula has previously criticised Washington’s military actions in Latin America and expressed concern about the escalation of conflicts in the Middle East.
For both countries, analysts say closer defence ties could strengthen South-South cooperation while supporting ambitions to develop domestic defence industries, a strategic priority for several emerging powers seeking to reduce reliance on Western military suppliers.
