Lula calls for the integration of South America

Lula calls for the integration of South America at the Brasilia summit.Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva on Tuesday called for greater economic, cultural and social integration of South American countries, opening a summit with a dozen leaders of the region in Brasilia.

It was the first continental meeting in almost a decade at the invitation of Lula, which aims to recover his country's active role in regional affairs and to overcome the ideological differences that have divided its neighbors in recent years.

"Today we are taking the first steps to resume our dialogue," he said at the meeting attended by all the leaders of the region except Peru.Lula urged state banks to work together to finance development and said the region should reduce reliance on "extra-regional currencies" for trade, not to mention the US dollar.

He proposed creating a regional energy market and suggested coordinated actions to tackle climate change.Lula said South American integration has been halted in recent years by conservative governments, pointing to his far-right predecessor Jair Bolsonaro who he said led to Brazil's isolation from the world and its neighbors.

The ideological divisions have undermined a previous attempt at regional cooperation called Unasur, created by left-wing presidents in 2008, which foundered when several countries elected right-wing governments, creating diplomatic rifts on the continent.

Also attending Tuesday's meeting was Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, who met with Lula on Monday during his first visit to Brazil in eight years to fully restore relations severed by Bolsonaro.