RIO DE JANEIRO, March 27 (Xinhua) -- Brazil launched the "Tonelero" submarine on Wednesday, the third one it has built through a partnership with France under the Submarine Development Program (ProSub).
Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva and French President Emmanuel Macron attended the launching ceremony held at the Itaguai port on the Rio de Janeiro coast.
"Today Brazil is part of a small group of countries that master submarine construction. ProSub is Brazil's largest and most important international defense cooperation project," Lula da Silva said during the event.
For his part, Macron said that the shipyard built to manufacture the submarine is one of the most modern in the world and the only one installed in South America.
The partnership includes the construction of an industrial infrastructure complex to support submarine operations, including shipyards, a naval base and a metal structure manufacturing unit in Itaguai.
