The United States government reacted to President Jair Bolsonaro’s (PL) visit to Moscow on Wednesday (16), questioning the fact that the Brazilian leader had expressed “solidarity” with Russia.
The president met with Vladimir Putin in Moscow, amid the crisis involving Ukraine, which pits Russians against the West. Before lunch and a closed meeting, in the opening words of the meeting Bolsonaro said he was “in solidarity with Russia” — without specifying in what aspect he manifested himself.
The US State Department issued a note criticizing the speech. “The moment when the president of Brazil expressed solidarity with Russia, just as Russian forces are preparing to launch attacks on Ukrainian cities, could not be worse,” reads the text, according to Reuters.
“This undermines international diplomacy aimed at averting a strategic and humanitarian disaster, as well as Brazil’s own calls for a peaceful solution to the crisis.”
The body responsible for US diplomacy also said there was a “false narrative” that the Biden administration had asked Brazil to choose between the US and Russia. “That is not the case. This is a matter of Brazil, as a major country, appearing to ignore armed aggression by a major power against a smaller neighboring country, a stance inconsistent with Brazil’s historical emphasis on peace and diplomacy.” says the note.
On Wednesday (16), State Department spokesman Ned Price limited himself to saying at a press conference that the US government hoped Bolsonaro had reinforced with Putin the importance of respecting international rules, which include not using military means. to pressure other countries.
“As democratic countries, we [EUA] and Brazil we have a responsibility to position ourselves for the values we share. And at the heart of these values are the principles of the international, rule-based order. This order which, for more than seven decades, has fostered unprecedented levels of prosperity, security and stability in Europe, [oceano] Pacific and in our hemisphere,” Price said, after a question asked by Sheet.
“Thus, our hope is that President Bolsonaro has taken the opportunity to reinforce, in the meeting with President Putin, the messages that are enshrined about the values we share, which are part of the international rules-based system.”
On Wednesday, Bolsonaro also tried to downplay the issue of the timing of his visit and repeated that he only supports “governments that want peace”, saying again that “all countries have problems”.
“Some countries thought we shouldn’t come. We kept our agenda, coincidentally or not, part of the troops left the border,” he told reporters, hours after the bilateral meeting. “My reading of President Putin is that he is also a person who seeks peace.”
Asked if he had sent any message to Ukraine, Bolsonaro left the improvised pulpit and tried to interrupt the interview.
Ukraine and Russia have been in a crisis for weeks, triggered after the Kremlin mobilized 100,000 to 175,000 troops in areas close to the borders with Ukraine. The US and allies of NATO, the western military alliance, accuse Putin of preparing an invasion of the neighboring country, as he did in 2014 when he annexed Crimea.
Moscow, for its part, rejects the expansion of NATO into territories close to Russia and wants the guarantee that Ukraine will never be part of the group. Putin denies any intention of promoting an invasion.
Before Bolsonaro’s trip, there was pressure from the US for the Brazilian leader’s trip to Moscow to be postponed. American diplomats expressed concern about the timing of the visit, as Putin’s reception of Bolsonaro would send the message that Brazil supports the Kremlin’s actions in Eastern Europe, lending legitimacy to what the US considers a violation of international law.
