Head of American diplomacy speaks with 58 countries, but ignores Brazil

American diplomacy head Marco Rubio had telephone conversations or personal meetings with representatives of at least 58 countries in a month and a half of Donald Trump government, but left Brazil out of its contact list.

The survey was done by CNN based on state department records.

The list includes, for example, chances or prime ministers of all members of the G20 (the group of the 20 largest economies on the planet)-except only from Brazil and South Africa.

Since Trump’s return to the White House, the secretary of state has spoken with authorities from ten countries of the American continent: Canada, Mexico, Argentina, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guyana, Jamaica, Panama, Dominican Republic and Venezuela – in the latter case, there was dialogue with opposition leader Edmundo González, which the United States recognizes as legitimate president.

In January, the Brazilian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mauro Vieira, sent a letter to Rubio greeting him for his appointment. The two, however, were not spoken once.

Since then, Brazil has been often cited by Trump as a commercial partner with high tariffs on American products, such as ethanol.

Outside the merely commercial issues, which are touched by other areas of government, the State Department was at the center of a controversy with Brazil.

Last week, the Western Hemisphere Office – a state department division – posted a message on social networks with criticism of Brazil.

“Blocking access to information and imposing fines on US -based companies for refusing to censor individuals who live there is incompatible with democratic values, including freedom of expression,” the office said in the X (former Twitter).

In response, a statement published by Itamaraty accused the federal court’s firm of distorting decisions on the requirement of legal representatives of the Big Techs operating in the country.

“The Brazilian government firmly rejects any attempt to politicize judicial decisions and emphasizes the importance of respecting the republican principle of the independence of powers, contemplated in the Brazilian Federal Constitution of 1988,” said Itamaraty, in the note.

Rubio Contacts

In 45 days, Marco Rubio spoke with the presidents, prime ministers or chancers of the following countries (in chronological order of contact):

• Europe (21): Poland, Denmark, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, France, United Kingdom, Hungary, Italy, Germany, European Commission, Finland, Belgium, Ukraine, Sweden, Russia, Poland, Greece, Czech Republic, Ireland, Malnda.
• Americas (10): Venezuela, Canada, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Guyana, Panama, El Salvador, Argentina, Mexico, Jamaica.
• Asia (19): Philippines, India, Japan, Indonesia, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Turkey, Israel, China, Vietnam, Yemen, Jordan, Qatar, Bahren, Uzbekistan, Iraq, Oman, Singapore
• Africa (6) : Egypt, Congo, Morocco, Algeria, Kenya, Angola.
• Oceania (2): Australia, New Zealand.

According to sources of Brazilian diplomacy, an approximation with the State Department is being conducted by the Brazilian Ambassador in Washington, Maria Luiza Viotti.

The evaluation in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, however, is that issues such as the deportation of Brazilians on precarious flights could be resolved by existing diplomatic channels – without the need to “climb the hierarchical level”.

A contact opportunity between Mauro Vieira and Marco Rubio, expected by Itamaraty, was the meeting of chancelors in Johannesburg (South Africa) in February.

However, the Secretary of State did not attend and the Trump government was represented at the meeting only by the US embassy in the country.

According to the evaluation of a diplomatic source heard by the CNN there are advantages in Brazil’s “forgetting” by the White House and the State Department.

This source argues that even historical allies of the United States, such as Canada and European countries, have been treated with “aggressiveness” by the Trump administration.

In this scenario, the interlocutor adds, it is more beneficial for a country like Brazil does not call (or call little) the attention of Americans than having a supposed “direct line” of dialogue with Rubio.

This content was originally published in Chief of American Diplomacy speaks with 58 countries, but ignores Brazil on the CNN Brazil website.

Source: CNN Brasil