Brazil faces new wave of frictions with United States and Argentina – BNamericas

Analysis

Tensions between Brazil and two of its main trading partners, the United States and Argentina, have escalated in recent hours.

This week, the United States government announced the revocation of the visa of the Brazilian ambassador in Washington, Maria Luiza Ribeiro Viotti. This measure, according to the U.S. Department of State, is a response to the delay by the Brazilian authorities in granting diplomatic approval for Daniel Perez – nominated by the United States – to take over the embassy in Brazil.

This is the latest episode in the deterioration of relations between Brazil and the United States. In July, Donald Trump’s administration imposed severe tariffs on Brazil, alleging forced labor, deforestation, among other practices that, according to Washington, would affect the competitiveness of U.S. economic sectors.

Read also Tariffs 2.0: Why Brazil and Mexico face distinct pressures

Behind these tensions, according to political analysts, is the effort by the US government to pressure Latin American countries that have left-wing leaderships, amid the rise of right-wing politicians in the region.

Brazil is governed by the left-wing president Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, who will seek re-election in October, in a fiercely contested electoral scenario. Recent polls indicate a close race between Lula and the main right-wing candidate, Flávio Bolsonaro, who appears close to the current president in voting intention surveys.

In parallel, Brazil’s relations with Argentina have also seen an escalation of tensions in recent days.

At the end of July, Argentina’s right-wing president, Javier Milei, visited São Paulo for the official convention launching Flávio Bolsonaro’s candidacy. During his speech, the Argentine president called Lula a “thief” and a “corrupt man”.

This week, Milei repeated his attacks against the Brazilian president and, in response, the Brazilian government announced that the Brazilian ambassador to Argentina, Julio Bitelli, will not return to his post in Buenos Aires, leaving Brazil without an ambassador in the neighboring country.

The act is considered a strong diplomatic response from Brazil to the Argentine president, keeping only a Brazilian trade representative in Buenos Aires.

In recent quarters, several Latin American countries have seen electoral victories by right-wing candidates and a political rapprochement between the region and Washington. 

However, the two largest and most populous countries in the region, Brazil and Mexico, remain governed by left-wing leaders. Now, right-wing political groups see the approaching October elections in Brazil as a key process to expand the influence of this political spectrum in the region.

Business environment

Although there has been an increase in geopolitical tensions between Brazil, the United States, and Argentina, businesspeople believe there will be an improvement in relations in the medium term.

“Geopolitical issues have always been part of international dynamics and are not something new. The main point is that these political or diplomatic issues must not interfere with trade relations and everyday transactions between countries”, said Gustavo Werneck, CEO of steelmaker Gerdau, in response to BNamericas during the company’s conference to discuss second-quarter results.

“Over the company’s 125 years of history, we have learned that political and geopolitical debates need to be kept separate from commercial relations. Companies need to continue operating, exporting, and maintaining economic relations regardless of political differences between governments. We believe there is room for Brazil to resume deeper dialogues with Argentina, with the United States, and with other international partners,” said Werneck.

The executive emphasized that the company remains optimistic that the channels of dialogue between the countries will be gradually rebuilt in the coming months.

(The original version of this content was written in Portuguese)

• Project: Sara Alicia
• Current stage:
• Updated: 2 days ago

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