Brazil's new president, Jair Bolsonaro, said Thursday that he is open to the possibility of allowing the United States a military base on Brazilian soil, a move that would mark a sharp change in the direction of Brazil's foreign policy.
Bolsonaro, who took power on Tuesday, said that Russia's support for the "dictatorship" of Nicolas Maduro in neighboring Venezuela has significantly increased tensions in the region and led to a worrying development.
In an interview with the SBT television network, when asked whether he would allow the US military presence in Brazil, Bolsonaro answered that he would certainly be willing to negotiate that possibility.
"Depending on what will happen in the world, who knows if we will need to discuss this issue in the future," Bolsonaro said. He emphasized that Brazil wants to have "predominance here in South America".
The right-wing leader wants to change the foreign policy created for more than a decade by the left-wing Workers' Party, which emphasized the importance of South-South relations and occasionally clashed with the US.
Bolsonaro, a 63-year-old former Brazilian army captain and sympathizer of Brazil's military dictatorship from 1964 to 1985 and US President Donald Trump, deepened ties with the US and Israel shortly after winning the election.
Bolsonaro's national security adviser, retired general Augusto Heleno, confirmed earlier Thursday that the president wants to move the Brazilian embassy in Israel to Jerusalem, but "logistical issues" stand in the way.
Heleno did not explain what kind of "logistical issues" these are, but it is known that leaders of the agricultural sector are opposed to moving the Brazilian embassy from Tel Aviv for fear of a reaction from Arab countries, which buy billions of dollars worth of "halal" meat from Brazil every year.
Benjamin Netanyahu became the first Israeli prime minister to visit Brazil when he attended Bolsonaro's inauguration. After a private meeting between the two leaders, Netanyahu said that Bolsonaro told him that the question of moving the embassy was "when, not if."
Heleno said on Thursday that "there is a clear desire for it to happen, but no date has been decided". He added that he does not think Brazilian meat exports will be threatened because Brazilian diplomats will work with Middle Eastern trading partners to ease their concerns, reports Hina.
Bolsonaro and the governors of some Brazilian states are trying to buy drones and rely on American and Israeli technology and know-how to win the fight against the powerful and heavily armed drug cartels.
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