Pompeo: US, Brazil want democracy back in Venezuela
US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said today (Jan. 2) that the government of President Donald Trump wants to forge closer ties with Brazil in security, and that the two countries will have the chance to work together against authoritarian regimes. This morning, he met with Brazilian Chancellor Ernesto Araújo at the Ministry of Foreign Relations.
“We talked about our deep wish for the resumption of democracy for the Venezuelan people,” said Pompeo, who attended President Jair Bolsonaro’s inauguration ceremony Tuesday (1). “I watched the peaceful transfer of power take place yesterday. In several countries, this doesn’t happen. We talked about Cuba, Venezuela, and Nicaragua. These are places where people are not allowed to voice their views. This is the sort of thing we plan to work together on.”
When asked by a foreign reporter on human rights in Brazil, Araújo said there is no reason to “fear any decline in the protection of human rights” in the country. “This is a remnant of the electoral campaign which survives for some reason. The commitment of our government with the defense of human rights is absolute,” Brazil’s foreign minister declared.
