Washington says move responds to Brazil’s refusal to grant visas to two U.S. diplomats and delay in approving ambassador nominee
The United States on Tuesday (4) revoked the visa of Brazil’s ambassador to Washington, Maria Luiza Ribeiro Viotti. U.S. officials said the move was retaliation for Brazil’s decision to deny visas to two American diplomats and for its failure to approve Washington’s nominee for ambassador to Brasília. In response, Brazil’s Presidential Communications Secretariat (SECOM) said the justifications were false and argued that the decision made “clear the unwarranted interest” of the United States “in interfering in Brazil’s next presidential election” in October.
Announcing the decision, the U.S. State Department said the measure was a reciprocal response to Brazil’s actions and that it had postponed the move several times to allow President Lula to reverse course, which it said he had not done.
U.S. officials added, however, that the visa revocation could be quickly reversed if Brazil took what they described as the appropriate steps and accepted President Donald Trump’s nominee for the U.S. Embassy in Brasília. Trump nominated Florida House Speaker Daniel Perez.
Another State Department official, speaking to reporters on condition of anonymity, said the Brazilian ambassador’s visa would be reinstated once the dispute is resolved. The official also stressed that revoking the visa does not amount to expelling the diplomat. She may remain in the United States, but without a valid visa.
Still, the official said indications are that Lula’s government will not resolve the issue before October’s election. Perez’s nomination was announced publicly by the Trump administration in June. It has been approved by the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee but still requires confirmation by the full Senate before he can take up the post in Brasília, provided Brazil also grants its approval. Confirmation requires a simple majority of the 100-member Senate. The host country’s approval, known as agrément, is the diplomatic procedure by which an ambassador is formally accepted and is typically considered a formality.
SECOM argued, however, that the agrément process is confidential and that “the designated nominee’s name should only become public after consent has been granted,” as provided for in Article 4 of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations.
“The United States government publicly announced the name of its nominee before formally requesting agrément from the Brazilian government. Brazil is abiding by international law. The Vienna Convention establishes no deadline for granting agrément. The U.S. request is still under review,” the statement read.
Beyond the dispute over Perez’s nomination, Brazil’s Foreign Ministry last month denied visas to Riley Barnes, U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, and one of his senior advisers, Samuel Samson. The visas were denied after The Washington Post reported that the two planned to travel to Brazil to question the integrity and reliability of the country’s electoral system.
The State Department rejected those accusations, saying the two officials had planned to visit Brasília between July 27 and 30 to meet with government officials, religious leaders, and others to discuss “election integrity” as well as religious freedom and freedom of speech.
“Our diplomats were prevented from carrying out the routine and customary work conducted between our two countries. Under those circumstances, after a lengthy delay and without any indication that the agrément impasse would be resolved, we adopted a reciprocal measure against a Brazilian diplomat,” the State Department official said.
In response, SECOM said the two officials “planned to visit the country to cast doubt on the integrity of Brazil’s electoral system, in an unacceptable attempt to interfere in the national political process.”
SECOM also noted that sanctions against Brazilian officials remain in effect, “including the cancellation of visas” to the United States, based on what it described as the “unfounded allegation of political persecution” of former President Jair Bolsonaro. Those affected include Federal Supreme Court (STF) justices and senior members of the executive branch.
“The Brazilian government spared no effort to resolve these differences,” SECOM said. “During his visit to Washington in May, among other issues, President Lula asked President Trump to lift the individual sanctions.”
For that reason, SECOM said Tuesday’s decision was not “an isolated incident,” but rather “part of a deliberate escalation of hostile measures against Brazil, driven by ideological reasons incompatible with a bilateral partnership that has always been based on mutual respect.” It added: “It also makes clear the unwarranted interest in interfering in the next presidential election.”
Tensions between the two countries escalated again in July, when the Trump administration imposed a 25% tariff on a range of Brazilian exports, citing alleged unfair trade practices following an investigation under Section 301 of the Trade Act. Brazil formally rejected the allegations.
Lula also denounced the tariffs as an attack on Brazil’s sovereignty and accused Senator Flávio Bolsonaro (Liberal Party), his main opponent in October’s presidential election, of lobbying in Washington for the measures to be imposed. Lula also warned Trump not to meddle in Brazil’s elections.
Last week, the Trump administration also extended for one year an executive order signed in June 2025 imposing a 50% tariff on Brazilian products. The measure has no practical effect because the U.S. Supreme Court suspended the 50% tariffs, ruling that Trump had exceeded presidential authority by invoking an emergency to impose the trade measures.
In the executive order extending the measure, the White House made a series of allegations against Brazil. It said Brazil engages in practices that interfere with the U.S. economy, infringe on the free speech rights of American citizens, violate human rights, and undermine U.S. interests in protecting its citizens and companies. It also accused members of the Brazilian government of “politically persecuting a former president, his family, and his supporters,” referring to former president Jair Bolsonaro, who is serving a prison sentence after being convicted by the STF for attempting a coup.
One week after imposing the 25% tariff, the United States also levied a 12.5% tariff on Brazil and 59 other countries, citing alleged failures to prevent the import of goods produced with forced labor.
Despite revoking the ambassador’s visa, the State Department official said Washington attaches great importance to its relationship with Brazil and respects the Brazilian people and whichever government they choose through free and fair elections. SECOM likewise said that, “in line with its diplomatic tradition, the Brazilian government opposes the logic of confrontation and reaffirms its commitment to dialogue and negotiation in all of its international relations.”
(With international press agencies)
*By Mariana Andrade — Brasília
Source: Valor International
https://valorinternational.globo.com/