Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is on a visit to China and Chinese officials expressed interest in nuclear cooperation during a meeting Lula had in Shanghai on Tuesday with Chinese space and technology officials.

Brazil's science and technology ministry said in a communique that the cooperation would be "in the field of the peaceful application of nuclear energy."

It added that China "also showed interest in acquiring Brazilian non-enriched uranium to get to know Brazilian technology for enriching the mineral."

Brazil uses ultra-centrifugation to refine uranium.

The ministry said "a position of the government on the topic could be sent to the Chinese side during a visit to Brazil by the chairman of the commission of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence, Zhang Yunchuan, expected in August."

WAR.WIRE