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"I don't doubt Brazil is better than England and Rio de Janeiro better than London," he quickly added.
Some of Rio's less flattering traits greet visitors soon after arrival, including highly visible shantytowns, long traffic jams and patchy mobile communications.
Like the other 11 World Cup host cities, it has struggled to finish the infrastructure promised for the tournament, and many projects have been shelved.
"Rio is a city that doesn't hide its poorest people like other places," said Paes.
But Brazil, he said, is a country that "in the last decade has removed 30 million people from poverty and is undergoing a fantastic transformation."
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It is also battling delays in preparing for the Summer Olympics. In April, International Olympic Committee vice-president John Coates criticized organizers' preparations for the games as "the worst that I've ever experienced."
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Source-AFP