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US, Brazil Sign Defense Accord

   Al Pessin | Pentagon 12 April 2010

   The United States and Brazil signed a defense cooperation agreement on
   Monday  that  officials and analysts say marks not only a new stage in
   relations  between  the  two  countries,  but  also a step in Brazil's
   emergence onto the world stage.
   U.S.  Secretary of Defense Gates said the agreement is the culmination
   of a series of improvements in U.S.-Brazil defense relations in recent
   years.
   "The  agreement  is  a  formal  acknowledgment  of  the  many security
   interests  and values we share as the two most populous democracies in
   the Americas," he said.
   Gates  said  those  interests include strengthening democracies around
   the   world,   promoting   economic   growth,  fighting  poverty,  and