Rubio to Meet Brazil’s Foreign Minister as Bolsonaro Dispute Intensifies

A brief exchange on the sidelines of a Group of 20 gathering has offered a rare hint of thawing ties between Washington and Brasilia after months of strain.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he spoke with Brazilian Foreign Minister Mauro Vieira during the G20 meeting and indicated they are set to cross paths again soon — a development that could help dial down a diplomatic feud between the two countries.

Mr Vieira attended the G20 foreign ministers’ meeting hosted by Mr Rubio in Atlanta.

According to a source familiar with the plans, the two men had a short conversation and agreed to meet again in the coming weeks, ahead of a G20 leaders summit in Miami in December.

Such a sit-down would come after a stretch of discord triggered by decisions on both sides: the Trump administration’s move in August to revoke the visa of Brazil’s ambassador in Washington, and the US decision to grant a visa to Brazilian Senator Flavio Bolsonaro following his defeat in the presidential election by leftist President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

Speaking to reporters in Atlanta as diplomats from G20 nations convened, Mr Rubio said he and Mr Vieira were also expected to see each other again in France at a G7 foreign ministers’ summit scheduled for next month.

Brazil is expected to attend that meeting as an observer, he noted.

Flavio Bolsonaro steps off a plane after arriving in Miami

Mr Rubio also addressed questions about Flavio Bolsonaro’s arrival in the United States, saying the Trump administration did not help arrange his departure.

Mr Bolsonaro landed in Miami on Wednesday, one day after the State Department said he and his family would be granted US visas.

“We didn’t facilitate anything,” Mr Rubio said.

“We had word that he had arrived in the United States. He had previously held a visa, and the president made a decision to allow him to enter the country,” Mr Rubio said, adding that the US government was not “involved directly in any of the moves that were made”.

‘Not politicising the issue’

In Brazil, an official sought to play down tensions linked to Brazil’s failure to approve US President Donald ‌Trump’s choice for ambassador in Brasilia, as well as Mr Lula’s victory in the 25 October runoff election.

“We’re clearly ‌not politicising the issue, as we haven’t in other situations regarding Brazilian citizens who have fled to the US,” the Brazilian official said.

A US official and a person familiar with the matter have told Reuters that Mr ⁠Trump has no current plans to support Mr Bolsonaro’s political ambitions despite allowing the Brazilian politician into ⁠the US.

Mr Rubio reiterated that the US government “was not involved directly in any of the moves” that led to Mr Bolsonaro’s departure from Brazil earlier this week.

Mr Bolsonaro’s father, far-right former President Jair Bolsonaro, is imprisoned in Brazil for plotting a coup after losing his own re-election bid in 2022.

Additional reporting by Press Association