President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (PT) denied a request by the German government for Brazil to supply tank ammunition that would be passed on by Berlin to Ukraine at war with Russia.
The decision took place on the 20th, at the PT’s meeting with the heads of the Armed Forces and the Minister of Defense, José Múcio. It was the eve of the resignation of the commander of the Army, Júlio Cesar de Arruda.
The general took the proposal up for discussion, showing that Prime Minister Olaf Scholz’s effort to put together an aid package in the area of ​​heavy armored vehicles for Kiev is broader than what has been disclosed.
After weeks of pressure from the US and Western allies, Scholz decided this week to send a contingent of 14 Leopard-2 tanks and, more importantly, released the re-export of weapons to anyone who wants to donate them to Ukraine —12 countries in Europe operate about 2,300 armored vehicles of the type.
According to military personnel and politicians with knowledge of the episode, Arruda stated that Brazil would pocket around R$ 25 million for a batch of ammunition stored for its Leopard-1 tanks, the model that preceded the tank desired by the government of Volodimir Zelenski. He considered demanding that Berlin not send the product to Kiev, which would make no sense.
Lula said no, arguing that it was not worth provoking the Russians. Brazil, despite having condemned the invasion that began on February 24, 2022 at the UN, maintains a position of neutrality for economic reasons, refusing to participate in sanctions against President Vladimir Putin’s Russia.
The request for Leopard-1 ammunition suggests that Berlin is willing to offer the old model, of which manufacturer Rheinmetall has 88 units in stock. They would need to be prepared for use, which the company president says could take all year, but the main problem today is ammunition.
The Leopard-1 is only operated by Brazil (261 units, according to the International Institute of Strategic Studies, in London), Chile (30), Greece (500) and Turkey (397) —the last two, members of NATO, military alliance west, as well as Germany. The tank has an old standard caliber 105mm cannon, while the Leopard-2 uses 120mm ammunition.
It was not the first deal of its kind. Last year, Germany unofficially sounded out the government to buy ammunition for the Gepard anti-aircraft gun tank it took out of retirement to send to Ukraine, without success. Brazil still operates the model.
THE Sheet contacted Itamaraty, Ministry of Defense and Army, munitions operator, to comment and specify the nature of the request —whether it was official or a probe. The agencies have not responded so far.
Brazil is not alone in its denial. The US has asked the new Colombian government of Gustavo Petro for the country to hand over former Soviet Mi-8 and Mi-17 helicopters to Kiev, which operates these models.
They took a no, reported Petro this week, as well as American ally Israel denied the release of a batch of Hawk anti-aircraft missiles. Tel Aviv made the excuse that the material is old and unreliable, but the fact that the government has a close, if not always friendly, relationship with Moscow weighed in.
Fertilizers motivate Brazil
The central motivation for Lula’s position has a name: fertilizers, vital for the country’s agribusiness and which have to be mostly imported. Russia has been the leader in this market for years – from 2018 to 2022, it sold an average of 22% of the product consumed by Brazilians.
Last year, with Western embargoes, insurers and shipping companies stopped doing business with Russian shipments, and alternative routes were created until a deal for the export of grain from Ukraine during the war was supposed to reopen the market to Moscow – Russia complains , however, that the West does not do its part.
The result was a jump in international prices, visible in Brazil: despite having imported 8 million tons of fertilizers from Moscow, 1.3 million tons less than in 2021, Russian profits grew 58.8% in the period , with a record US$5.6 billion sold to Brazilians.
This pulled the result of the trade balance with Russia, according to data from the Foreign Trade Secretariat, in favor of the Kremlin. Brazil bought a total of 37% more from Moscow in 2022 compared to 2021, totaling US$ 7.8 billion.
The Russians are sixth in the ranking of countries that most sold to Brazil. Regarding exports, they bought a mere US$ 1.9 billion worth of Brazilian products.
Russia, despite pressure from sanctions, managed to navigate the crisis in 2022. Selling oil and gas at a discount, starting with the gradual closure of Europe’s priority market, saw China and India multiply trade with the country.
Ukraine, of course, condemns this relationship, accusing the countries of funding Russian aggression. In the Brazilian case, Zelenski even complained about the country’s position, in particular that of the then president Jair Bolsonaro (PL).
While still president, Bolsonaro made a controversial visit to Russia in the week leading up to the conflict, and made several statements refusing to take a clear side – which, incidentally, is the historical position of the Itamaraty.
Lula, in interviews, was also in the same vein of condemning the war without taking a stand against Putin. This earned her a place on the Ukrainian government’s list of Russian propaganda disseminators, but her name was eventually removed.
The Russians thanked the Brazilian position, and Putin even told the Sheet before the second round in October, which would work very well both with PT and with the opponent finally defeated.
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