Brazil’s Jair Bolsonaro to deliver foreign policy speech in Texas on Thursday

Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro will address business and civic leaders today in Dallas, Texas, at an event to discuss foreign affairs.

The trip comes on the heels of a cancelled visit by Bolsonaro to New York City. He was set to be honoured by the Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce, but many of the event’s sponsors withdrew their support following public pressure, including from NYC Mayor Bill de Blasio, due to Bolsonaro’s homophobic, misogynistic, anti-environment and racist rhetoric.

Bolsonaro has avidly supported President Trump and has voiced his intention to foster stronger relations between the two most populous countries in the Americas. Since he took office, Brazilian tariffs on wheat imports from the US have been cut and visa requirements for US tourists dropped. In exchange, Trump has announced plans to designate Brazil as a non-member partner in NATO and support its accession to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD).

Today, expect the Brazilian president to stress stronger ties between Washington and Brasilia. Regardless, Bolsonaro will see few long-term developments in his country’s relationship with the US unless he can push his contentious free-market reform bills, which include opening up Brazil to greater levels of foreign investment, through Congress.

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