U.S. officials are “standing by” to cooperate with Brazil‘s investigation into the riotous assault on federal government buildings, a prominent State Department official said.
“We are standing by for any requests for assistance from our Brazilian partners, from Brazilian authorities — whether those come through diplomatic channels, whether they come through law enforcement channels,” State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters Monday. “And we will, of course, respond to those requests as appropriate.”
Brazilian authorities have arrested about 1,500 people in the wake of a massive riot in the federal district by supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro. The violent display has drawn comparisons to the Jan. 6 crisis at the U.S. Capitol following outgoing President Donald Trump’s defeat in the 2020 elections, made more uncomfortable for the United States by the fact that Bolsonaro and a key Brazilian security official were in Florida when the riot took place.
“Unfortunately, those who had to do the security of the Federal District were the military police of the federal district, and they did not do it. There was incompetence, bad will, or bad faith. You saw the images of how they accompanied them,” said Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula Da Silva, who was sworn into office on Jan. 1.
FORMER BRAZILIAN PRESIDENT JAIR BOLSONARO ADMITTED TO US HOSPITAL AMID PROTEST AFTERMATH
Those suspicions have a specific target, Lula implied, in the official responsible for security in the federal district — Anderson Torres, who was justice minister under Bolsonaro prior to his appointment as federal district security secretary last week.
”The secretary of security … everyone knows the reputation of being conniving with the demonstrations,“ Lula said, per Merco Press.
Torres has denied wrongdoing, but he was ousted under suspicion following a report that he is in Orlando, where Bolsonaro has taken up residence.
“I did not come to the United States to meet with Bolsonaro. I did not meet with him at any time,” Torres said. “I am on vacation with my family. There was no plot for this to happen.”
Brazilian Attorney General Augusto Aras has launched a criminal investigation of the riots, including a call for the arrest of Torres and “other public agents responsible for acts and omissions.” Lula also issued a joint statement with the heads of Brazil’s legislative branch and judiciary.
“The three powers of the republic, the defenders of democracy and the constitution, reject the terrorist acts and criminal, coup-mongering vandalism that occurred,” the Brazilian leaders said.
The suspicions could put President Joe Biden’s team in a fraught diplomatic position, given the divisions in Brazil and the presence of Bolsonaro and Torres in the U.S.
“The Biden administration should not look like it is being partisan with Brazil, partisan within Brazilian politics, within the Brazilian setting, because obviously, these two countries need to get along with different governments down the line,” Center for Strategic and International Studies senior associate Lauri Tahtinen told the Washington Examiner. “But at the same time, on the other hand, there’s now the sentiment of, ‘What on earth are they doing in the United States right now while this is going down?’”
Some U.S. policymakers, embracing the analogy between the uproar in Brazil and the Jan. 6 riot in the U.S., have called for Bolsonaro to be sent back to his country.
“He basically used the Trump playbook to inspire domestic terrorists to try to take over the government,” Rep. Joaquin Castro (D-TX) told CNN on Sunday. “It looks a lot like Jan. 6 in the United States. And right now Bolsonaro is in Florida. And he’s actually very close to Donald Trump. He should be extradited to Brazil.”
Price, the State Department spokesman, demurred when asked about the possibility that the attack was organized from the U.S.
“This will be a question for [the] Brazilian investigation,” he said. “If it would be useful for Brazilian investigators to be in receipt of information from the United States government, we would of course adjudicate those requests promptly, as we always do, and provide them with appropriate information. But we haven’t received such a request.”
The eruption of violence on Sunday was a continuation of protests staged by Bolsonaro supporters since the right-wing leader lost a runoff election against Lula. Bolsonaro has contested the results, although he acquiesced to a transition of power.
“Within the laws, respecting the Constitution, I searched for a way out of this,” Bolsonaro said prior to Lula’s inauguration in an apparent message for supporters to abandon their hope of his return to power. “We live in a democracy or we don’t. … No one wants an adventure.”
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Lula’s government has not requested that Biden’s team take any action against Bolsonaro or Torres.
“We have excellent cooperation with our Brazilian partners. As I said before, we, on a daily basis, work with our Brazilian partners through diplomatic channels [and] through law enforcement channels, as well,” Price said. “And if there is a law enforcement matter that needs to be adjudicated between the United States and Brazil, we have well-honed, well-practiced processes for doing so. And we’re prepared to do that. But as I mentioned before, we haven’t received any specific requests yet.”
