SAO PAULO – President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has approved a strategic plan for the defense of the Amazon and Brazil’s offshore oil fields that will now be submitted to Congress, Brazilian media reported.

Lula backed reactivating the joint general staff, which will coordinate the actions of the army, navy and air force, under a proposal made by Defense Minister Nelson Jobim, the Folha de Sao Paulo newspaper reported on its Web site.

The joint general staff will be headed by a high-ranking officer appointed by Lula.

Among the plan’s goals is completing the construction of five submarines, including a nuclear sub, to protect Brazil’s vast offshore oil reserves.

France is assisting Brazil’s Defense Ministry with both the submarine project and the creation of a military purchasing office.

Lula met on Friday with Jobim to discuss the military plan, Folha de Sao Paulo said.

The plan will give the three branches of the armed forces joint police power over Brazil’s borders, a power currently held only by the army.

The plan also opens the way for the reactivation of Brazil’s military industry, with the government investing nearly $30 billion in its rearmament drive.