Iran Demands Explanations on US Support Note by Brazil

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The Iranian Chancellery summoned Brazil’s representative in Tehran on Sunday, January 5th, to demand explanations from Brazilian diplomacy about Brazil’s position on the events in Iraq that culminated in the death of General Qassem Soleimani of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.

Soleimani was hit by an American missile five days ago.

As Rodrigo Azeredo, Brazil’s ambassador to that country is on vacation, the embassy’s business official, Maria Cristina Lopes, represented the Brazilian government in the meeting at the Iranian Foreign Ministry. The meeting was confirmed by Itamaraty to GLOBO, but the content of the conversation was not disclosed.

“The conversation, the content of which is confidential and will not be commented on by Itamaraty, took place cordially, within the usual diplomatic practice,” reported the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

As a reaction to the event, Itamaraty released a note last Friday, January 3rd, virtually supporting the assassination of the military officer by the United States.

The body condemned terrorism several times and, without naming names, used diplomatic language to demonstrate that, for the Brazilian government, the Iranian general and the Revolutionary Guard itself could be classified as terrorists.

“Upon learning of the actions taken by the US in recent days in Iraq, the Brazilian government expresses its support for the fight against the scourge of terrorism and reiterates that this fight requires the cooperation of the entire international community without seeking any justification or relativization for terrorism,” reads an excerpt from the communiqué, titled “Events in Iraq and the fight against terrorism”.

In the note, the government states that “Brazil is equally ready to be involved in international efforts that contribute to preventing an escalation of conflicts at this time”. It further stresses that terrorism cannot be considered a problem restricted to the Middle East and developed countries, “and Brazil cannot remain indifferent to this threat, which also affects South America”.

President Jair Bolsonaro also made a similar statement, and said that Brazil is “an ally of any country in the fight against terrorism”.

The note was met with criticism from active and retired Brazilian diplomats for endorsing the assassination of a foreign government official, which is considered an act of war, and breaking Brazil’s tradition of considering organizations on UN Security Council lists as terrorists. Officially, Brazil only considers al-Qaeda and Islamic State groups as terrorists, following resolutions taken by the United Nations.

In addition to Brazil, Tehran asked for clarification from representatives of other countries that expressed themselves on the issue, such as Germany and Switzerland, in the case of representing the USA in Iran, since the two countries do not maintain diplomatic relations.

A huge crowd gathered on Monday for Soleimani’s funeral ceremony in Tehran. Calls for harsh revenge against the perpetrators of his murder, coming from the military officer’s daughter, high-ranking officials and also spontaneous demonstrations by the Iranian population, were the tonic of the farewell from the capital to the general.