Washington.- The United States canceled the visa of the Brazilian ambassador in Washington, María Luiza Viotti, this Tuesday as a reciprocal measure for the Brazilian government’s delay in granting approval to the U.S. ambassador designated for Brasília.
The official, who spoke to a small group of journalists on condition of anonymity, explained that Viotti’s visa will be reinstated once Brazil grants the permit to the American candidate and warned that Washington does not rule out adopting new reciprocal measures if the restrictions imposed on its diplomats persist.
The decision is in response to a series of diplomatic disagreements accumulated over the last year. As explained, Brazil has delayed granting approval to the designated U.S. ambassador, Daniel Pérez, and has signaled that it will not resolve the process until after the Brazilian elections.
Also, he stated that Brazilian authorities denied visas in March to a U.S. delegation that was to travel to a forum on critical minerals and, more recently, rejected the visas of the Assistant Secretary for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor (DRL) and one of his deputies for a visit that Washington described as routine.
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In the official’s view, those restrictions prevented U.S. diplomats from performing their usual work and prompted the response based on the principle of reciprocity.
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The diplomatic dispute comes at a time of growing tension between Washington and Brasilia, marked by the Donald Trump Administration’s positions on Brazilian domestic policy and the presidential elections scheduled for October.
Trump has become a relevant actor in the struggle between the president, Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, and Senator Flávio Bolsonaro, son of former president Jair Bolsonaro (2019-2023) and opposition candidate.
Lula has questioned the U.S. stance and asked Trump not to intervene in the Brazilian electoral process.
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“I think Trump knows little about Brazil… if he knows it through his relationship with the Bolsonaro family, he knows little about Brazil,” stated the Brazilian president, who demanded “the same respect for Brazil” that he has for the United States.”
