Bolsonaro avoids commenting G20, visits a delicatessen shop and goes to Fontana di Trevi

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The president of Brazil, Jair Bolsonaro, did not speak about his expectations regarding the G20 when he arrived at the Brazilian embassy, ​​in the historic Pamphilj palace, in Rome, where he will stay until Monday (1).

As he got out of the car at the door of the building, in Navona Square, to greet seven supporters holding Brazilian flags, he said he was happy to be able to visit, next Monday, the city from which his ancestors came — Italian newspapers claim that this is not confirmed.

“Thank you very much, I saw on the way that people recognize the Brazilian flag. I am very happy, God willing on Monday I will visit my ancestors,” said Bolsonaro, before entering the embassy. Economy Minister Paulo Guedes, who will stay with the president, did not speak to the journalists either.

The small group of supporters that welcomed the president was led by Jorge Ferreira Lima, 49, a resident of Rome for ten years. According to him, the participants combined the tribute by WhatsApp groups that bring together around 140 people.

Lima, who is evangelical, like the other five members, also carried an Israeli flag. For him, Bolsonaro, who won the majority of votes from Brazilian voters in Rome in the 2018 election, has the support of immigrants because he “defends family values”.

There were no protesters against the president on his arrival at the embassy. Entities planning to protest against the government preferred to distribute leaflets criticizing its policy in areas such as the environment, health and economy. Critical actions to the Brazilian leader include the circulation of a fictitious menu that includes moldy bread, chicken feet, fish bones and transgenic tomatoes.

After reaching the embassy, ​​Bolsonaro walked out the back door towards Campo de Fiori, Rome’s tourist spot famous for its flower and fruit shops. A 12-second video posted on social media by Italian-Brazilian deputy Luis Roberto Lorenzato shows the president walking on a commercial street surrounded by security guards and supporters.

“Finding his people,” Lorenzato wrote in the publication’s caption. A fervent supporter of Bolsonaro, the Brazilian elected to the Italian Parliament in 2018 has invited his little more than 1,500 followers to attend the event on Monday to commemorate the title of honorary citizen granted to the president by the city of Anguillara Vêneta, which would be the land of your ancestors.

When walking through Campo dei Fiori without a protective mask against the coronavirus, the Brazilian representative does not follow the health recommendations in force in Italy. Currently, the entire country is classified as the “white zone”, the safest on a scale of four different scenarios.

In these areas, the local Ministry of Health has determined that the use of masks is only mandatory in closed places, but the National Tourism Agency recommends using the mask in open environments where it is not possible to maintain physical distance — in the case of the crowding caused by the president .

On the walk, Bolsonaro entered a salumeria, a delicatessen. According to one of the members of the delegation, when he learned he was the Brazilian president, the store owner offered cold meats —culatello di Zibello, a raw ham typical of that city, and spalla cotta, sausage made with pork shoulder — and pecorino cheese, made from sheep’s milk, truffled. To accompany the cold cuts and cheese, the Chief Executive declined the grappa (Italian brandy) offered and drank a cola soda.

He then visited the Pantheon, considered one of the most beautiful monuments in the capital, commissioned during the reign of Emperor Augustus and rebuilt by Hadrian around 126.

This is Bolsonaro’s first visit to Rome, but if superstition counts, it may be his last: the president did not toss a coin at the Fontana di Trevi, where he went next. According to legend, those who do not do so do not return to the Italian capital. Also with the president were his son Carlos, the minister of citizenship, João Roma, and the ambassador of Brazil to France, Luís Fernando Serra.

The diplomat went to Italy to participate in a bilateral meeting between the foreign ministers of both countries, Brazilian Carlos Alberto Franco França and Frenchman Jean-Yves Le Drian. Among the subjects should be business possibilities in the defense area.​

Late Friday, local time, Bolsonaro met with the President of Italy, Sergio Mattarella, as part of the Italian ceremonial for the leaders participating in the G20. On Saturday and Sunday, he participates in the group’s summit and has bilateral meetings. Bolsonaro will also have a meeting on Saturday with Mathias Cormann, secretary general of the OECD, the club of rich countries.

Brazil is claiming to be part of the entity, in which Mexico, Chile, Costa Rica and Colombia are already present, but the Bolsonaro administration has encountered obstacles to advancing this process.

Also on Saturday, the Brazilian president participates in an event at the Termas de Diocletian and in a dinner offered by Mattarella to the leaders of the G20. On Sunday morning, before the official summit meeting, he has yet to attend an event on “the private sector in the fight against climate change” — the current government’s environmental policy is one of the points most criticized by European leaders and provoked the blockade processing of the trade agreement between Mercosur and the European Union.

On Monday, Bolsonaro travels to Padua, where, before visiting the city of Anguillara Vêneta, he must visit the basilica of Santo Antônio, one of the most popular Catholic saints in Brazil. Those responsible for the sanctuary, however, were embarrassed by the visitor, who believe they have conflicted with Pope Francis several times, over deforestation in the Amazon and over human rights.

An Antonian friar told Corriere della Sera that “this is a person who has just been accused by his own country of crimes against humanity for the way he mishandled the Covid pandemic, which has already caused more than 600,000 deaths”. According to the Italian press, Bolsonaro will not be received by the new rector, the papal delegate, or the bishop.

The Church of Padua released a statement in which “it sincerely asks President Bolsonaro to promote policies that respect justice, health and the environment, especially to support the poor.”

The text also says that the granting of the title of honorary citizen to the president by the city of Anguillara Vêneta caused “embarrassment”. On Tuesday, Bolsonaro participates in Pistoia in a ceremony in honor of the Brazilian soldiers who died in World War II, before returning to Brazil.

This is the Brazilian president’s first trip to Europe since the beginning of the pandemic. As he declares himself not vaccinated, he must undergo frequent tests to detect the coronavirus.

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