President Donald Trump’s meeting with his Brazilian counterpart on Tuesday opens the door for a new alliance and deepening trade relationship that the administration says will dramatically reshape the power dynamics of the hemisphere.
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro, who tweeted about his pro-American views on his way to Washington, will meet with Trump in the Oval Office before taking part in a joint press conference.
“The U.S.-Brazil relationship has always been one of potential, but yet it always seemed that that potential has never been met,” a senior administration official said. “This time, it is different.”
The senior administration official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, touted a “historic remaking” of a partnership for domestic, regional, and foreign policy priorities between the two largest economies in the Western Hemisphere.
The Trump administration will use the opportunity to announce its intent to give Brazil the status of major non-NATO ally, a preferential distinction that brings with it a higher level of strategic cooperation, according to two sources familiar with the plan.
It would be a significant step in Latin America, making Brazil only the second country in that region, after Argentina, to receive the status that just 17 countries have.
Watch: Leftist Wearing Cat Ears Attacks, Tries to Humiliate Black Conservative Who Was Nothing but Polite
Kim Reynolds’s retirement in Iowa has House Republicans eyeing governor’s seat
Trump envoy meets Putin in Russia as Trump fumes over stalled Ukraine peace talks
Watch: 3 Cop Cars Summoned, Student Suspended After Asking Admin Why American Flag Isn’t in Classrooms – Report
GOP senators bullish on post-Easter ‘big, beautiful’ budget agreement
Columbia anti-Israel protester Mahmoud Khalil can be deported, judge rules
State Farm compromises on emergency rate hikes for Californians
Watch: In 5 Seconds Flat Common Sense Judge Traps Woke ‘BLM for 1st Graders’ Lawyer
US Attorney Alina Habba Announces Investigation Into Democratic Governor and Attorney General
NYC university sued, accused of not taking action against antisemitic harassment
Red state lawmakers warned about allegedly accepting ‘DEI dollars’ from hospital association: Watchdog
SCOOP: Biden-era grant program described as ‘gold bar’ scheme by Trump EPA administrator under scrutiny
Elon Musk lawyer launches campaign to succeed Texas AG Ken Paxton
Arrested Istanbul mayor debuts in court, accuses Erdogan of political suppression
Fact Check: Did a Kentucky Restaurant Successfully Stave Off Flood by Filling Building with Fresh Water?
“It speaks volumes to say that we’re now there and that the Brazilians are aligned, the United States is aligned and now our militaries in many ways will be aligned,” said Fernando Cutz, who served as a senior director at the National Security Council in the Trump administration until last year.
Bolsonaro, who repeatedly invoked Trump’s name during his campaign, is sometimes referred to as the “Trump of the Tropics.” That caught Trump’s attention.
Within an hour of being confirmed, Bolsonaro received a congratulatory call from Trump who committed to working side-by-side on issues of importance to the two countries.
A couple of weeks later, National Security Advisor John Bolton went to Rio de Janeiro to visit the new president. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo led a delegation to Bolsonaro’s inauguration.
“He was unabashedly — and particularly in Brazil — unabashedly pro-American,” the senior administration official said of Bolsonaro. “He ran on the campaign that he wanted to be the best friend to the United States, that he wanted to have this close relationship with President Trump and what that would mean for Brazil, what that would mean for the region and the world. I think that was very important.”
Brazilian officials are expected to discuss meat, sugar and ethanol trade with the United States.
Trump has already embraced Bolsonaro as a “like-minded leader” despite the Brazilian leader’s “flamboyant disregard for human rights and democratic norms,” said Benjamin Gedan, who was National Security Council director for South America during the Obama administration.
But it remains unclear how willing Trump will be to further open up U.S. markets to Brazil.
“Given Trump’s protectionism, this visit will test just how far foreign leaders can get through flattery,” Gedan said.
The senior administration official said the United States has a trade surplus with Brazil of about $27 billion, but officials see opportunities for “deepening our trade relationship.”
“We want to move forward. You know, these are two largest economies in the Western Hemisphere,” the official said. “There’s a lot of things that we do and we share and we produce in common, but there’s also a lot of things from where there’s a comparative advantage.”
Story cited here,
