Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro tells local radio station he hasn’t changed his mind about relocating Brazilian embassy to Jerusalem
Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro said in an interview with a local radio station on Monday that he had not changed his mind about the relocation of the Brazilian embassy to Jerusalem, though he did not provide a timeline for the move.
Bolsonaro, who visited Israel last week, announced that Brazil would be opening a trade office with diplomatic status in Jerusalem but did not say the embassy would be relocated from Tel Aviv to the Israeli capital.
Bolsonaro announced after his election that he intended to uphold his campaign promise and move the Brazilian embassy to Jerusalem.
Before his arrival in Israel, the Brazilian president fueled speculation that his government might renege on his campaign promise to move the Brazilian embassy to Jerusalem, after he told local reporters his government might open a “business office” in Jerusalem.
In announcing the trade office in Jerusalem, Brazil’s Foreign Minister, Ernesto Araujo, said the move would not come in place of the promised embassy move – but would be the first step towards an embassy relocation.
Arab leaders have condemned Bolsonaro’s plan to relocate the embassy to Jerusalem and have pressured him not to go through with it.
The Arab League recently warned Bolsonaro that moving the embassy to Jerusalem would be a setback for relations with Arab countries.
The Palestinian Authority (PA) envoy to Brazil warned recently that moving Brazil’s embassy in Israel to Jerusalem would be an “attack” on Palestinian people and a breach of international law.
Last week Bolsonaro visited Jerusalem’s Western Wall, standing right by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who has quickly become one of the new Brazilian president’s closest allies. Bolsonaro’s visit makes the South American leader the very first head of state to ever appear side by side with an Israeli prime minister at the Western Wall. His visit to the holy site has been interpreted as a tacit endorsement of Israeli sovereignty over East Jerusalem and its environs.
An Israeli foreign ministry spokesman confirmed that the occasion marked the first time that a current state head went to the site with an Israeli prime minister A7 reports.
Bolsonaro’s visit follows a similar one by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo from a few weeks ago, which was also an occasion for being the first time a top American visited the wall with an Israeli prime minister. As a few other nations follow America in backing Israel’s declaration that Jerusalem is the capital, Bolsonaro keeps showing that he is also on board with making sure his nation does everything in its power to show it stands strongly with Israel under all circumstances.
Bolsonaro has talked before about why he supports Israel so much, saying a Christian pilgrimage to the Jordan River from a couple of years ago left a lasting impression.
(INN)
