The Brazilian Army withdrew from participating in an annual competition between military forces organized by Russia, the country that invaded Ukraine on February 24, changing the geopolitical balance of the planet.
The International Army Games, held since 2015, began on Saturday (13) and will run until the next 27. They comprise 36 competitions in 12 countries, including for the first time Venezuela, Moscow’s main ally in the United States’ strategic backyard.
When questioned, the Force’s Social Communication Center confirmed that there would be no Brazilian delegation, but did not mention reasons. According to officials with knowledge of the matter, the decision was political: participating in such an event organized by a country at war could suggest that Brazil has a side in the dispute.
The orientation differs from the behavior of the government of Jair Bolsonaro (PL), which condemned the invasion in a vote at the UN, but is not part of the group of countries that apply sanctions to the government of Vladimir Putin. On the contrary, the Brazilian president looked for new business opportunities, particularly to buy cheaper diesel.
Brazil participated as an observer in the 2015 and 2019 editions, and competed last year in the category of countries without the use of armored vehicles. Won a parachute jump event and placed third overall.
There are all sorts of military simulations at the event. Venezuela will host the border sniper competition, and has had a base renovated by the Russians to receive the competitors. The Chavista regime has been Moscow’s military partner since the 2000s, having acquired fighter jets, tanks, anti-aircraft systems and all sorts of light weapons.
The US Southern Command has already classified the Russian military presence, in addition to the Chinese economic footprint in Latin American countries, as a strategic challenge. On the eve of the International Games, by the way, the Americans concluded their main annual exercise in the region, the Panamax.
The games have already been dubbed the “Axis of Evil Olympics” by observers, rescuing the derogatory term coined by then-President George W. Bush in 2002 to refer to rival US countries — in this case, Iran, Iraq and North Korea.
In this edition, 21 countries distant or rivals of the USA will participate. The highlight is Washington’s antagonist in the Cold War 2.0, China, which will have on its soil a dispute between armored vehicles and another, to clear minefields. Two of the competitors are not recognized by the UN: the Russian protectorates of Abkhazia and North Ossetia, extirpated from Georgia after the 2008 war against Moscow.
Other names are familiar from Americans’ banned lists: Belarus, Iran, Sudan, and Venezuela itself, despite recent efforts at rapprochement by the Joe Biden administration.
This was not always the case, as the Brazilian presence in the past indicated. Greece was the only country from NATO, the western military alliance, to participate in the games. USA, France, Germany, Netherlands, Slovenia and Turkey, all members of the club, have already sent observers in previous editions.
