Brazil – AND: Trump Sends Troops to Latin America and Steps Up Blackmail Against Brazil

We hereby share an unofficial translation of an article published by A Nova Democracia (AND) on October 17.

The United States is sending hundreds of soldiers to Latin America for exercises with local troops and to provide support for special operations against alleged drug traffickers. According to a report by the media monopoly The New York Times, published on October 14, the first battalion consists of approximately 600 soldiers from the 10th Mountain Division, headquartered at Fort Drum, New York. The destinations mentioned include Panama, Colombia, and Honduras.

The US Embassy in Panama disputed the report that 600 soldiers were being sent to Panamanian territory. In a statement dated October 14, it affirmed that 120 soldiers from the same division are participating in a two-week jungle training course and are scheduled to return to their base on October 25. The embassy thus acknowledges the presence of the troops, although it disputes the scale and nature of the deployment reported by the newspaper.

In addition to the battalion, hundreds of soldiers were assigned to a new operations command for the so-called Western Hemisphere, headquartered in Miami. This move follows the transfer of MQ-9 Reaper drones from Africa to Colombia and Ecuador. In early October, Ecuadorian Defense Minister Gian Carlo Loffredo stated that two devices were already operating in the country’s airspace.

The scope of this escalation is laid out in Washington’s own orders. In a proclamation dated March 7, Trump directed the US to train and mobilize the armies of partner countries against organizations classified as cartels and terrorists. In the same document, he ordered the removal of foreign influences from outside the Western Hemisphere. Under the guise of fighting crime, Yankee imperialism is organizing local troops and demanding exclusive control over the continent.

In Brazil, the extreme right is already offering its services. In a conversation with Colombian President Abelardo de la Espriella, reported on October 8, Flávio Bolsonaro promised to include the country in the Shield of the Americas, the military coalition led by Trump. The chosen interlocutor has experience in the matter: after taking office, Espriella authorized joint operations with US forces in Colombia.

The promise finds support within the military. According to an October 8 report by UOL, officers from the Army High Command consider operations with US military personnel along Brazil’s borders acceptable, provided they remain under Brazilian command. The objection to a permanent foreign base coexists, would you believe it, with the acceptance of foreign troops in operations within the country.

It is against this backdrop that regional mobilization is expanding the means of blackmail against Luiz Inácio’s opportunistic government. Washington had already designated the First Capital Command (PCC) and the Red Command (CV) as terrorist organizations on June 28. In a response to members of Congress released on October 15, the State Department once again defended this classification and, when asked about recognizing the Brazilian election results, avoided making an explicit commitment. It opted instead for the phrase “free and fair” elections.

This diplomatic statement is accompanied by soldiers, drones, and a coalition that the Bolsonaro candidate promises to join. The pressure on Brasília is thus gaining an increasingly close military backing, while the extreme right presents submission to Washington as the solution to national problems.

The Luiz Inácio administration, for its part, continued joint training with the forces of the potential aggressor. Between September 9 and 24, a US Air Force HC-130J Combat King II participated in the Tápio Joint Exercise in Campo Grande (MS), as part of an activity linked to Southern Command’s Resolute Sentinel. Military integration continues under an administration that makes the defense of sovereignty a campaign platform.

Its defense minister has already explained how he would respond to an invasion. At an event hosted by the National Confederation of Industry on August 4, José Múcio declared: “We have to open the gates.” He claimed there was a lack of equipment to confront the US and a lack of funds to repair the damage. While Trump deploys troops and the Bolsonaro camp offers up the territory, the minister in charge of national defense offers to welcome the invader with a red carpet.