US imperialism and Brazil hold military exercises in the Amazon region
Featured image: US soldiers embark for a travel to Macapá, where one of the phases of the Core military exercise took place. Source: AND
The Brazilian president Luiz Inácio da Silva has authorized the entry of 294 US soldiers to the Amazon in the framework of the joint military exercise Core (Combined Operation and Rotation Exercise), which is part of the cooperation program of the US and Brazilian military.
”The first phase took place between November 2nd and 4th, in Belém, in which the Yankee soldiers participated in the Jungle Life and Combat Training, a class taught by soldiers from the 2nd Jungle Infantry Battalion. The second phase took place this Monday, November 6, in Macapá, where the military participated in a graduation ceremony and a panel that discussed the entry of women into military careers. In the third and final phase, which will take place between November 7th and 16th in the municipalities of Ferreira Gomes, Oiapoque and Clevelândia do Norte, in Amapá, they will receive airmobile assault training with Brazilian Army helicopters and operations in a jungle environment”, reports A Nova Democracia. Through this exercise, US imperialism increases its presence in the country, undermining the national sovereignty even more, and the militarization of the Brazilian State deepens. As can be seen from the program, especially the warfare in the jungle is of concern, and this is no coincidence: in the Amazon region there is intensifying struggles for land by the poor peasants and indigenous peoples, as large ”agribusiness” companies expand with the support of paramilitaries in this region. Through this joint exercise, the Brazilian State prepares to combat the struggle waged against it in the countryside.
This military exercise is part of the long history of the US training and coordinating the operations of the Brazilian military, but what makes it particular is that it takes place in the Amazon. The Defense Cooperation Agreement between the US and Brazil was established in 2015 by then-president Dilma Roussef, who similarly to da Silva represented the ”Workers’ Party” (PT). Since then, military exercises have been held annually. Central for the exercises has been counter-insurgency warfare in a forested area or jungle. The US shows interest in the Amazon, and military exercises have been held there before, such as AmazonLog in 2017 and Operation Amazônia in 2020. Also the commander of the Pentagon’s Southern Command, General Laura Richardson, visited the Amazon multiple times. In addition to the main aspect of repressing the struggles of the peoples in the Amazon region, the area is strategically important for the US in order for it to maintain its foothold in the whole of Latin America against other imperialists, and the heightened military presence in the Amazon is also meant to be a show of power. Luiz Inácio da Silva once again shows his true face, proving, that he is just like all the others who have sold the country to the Yankees.
