Army chief of staff says Brazil must be prepared for war and be deterrent force

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL –  Russia-Ukraine war, total hybrid warfare of the West and NATO against Russia, uprisings in Yemen and Sudan, increasing Chinese threats against Taiwan, American alleged wire-pulling behind the scenes to depose the Pakistani PM, and much more. The world is becoming more and more uncertain.

Brazilian Army Chief of Staff Gen. Marcos Antonio Amaro dos Santos said Thursday (7) that Brazil must be prepared for a possible war. He also spoke about the war in Ukraine, calling Russian actions an “invasion.”

The statement came during the promotion ceremony of general officers attended by President Jair Bolsonaro.

“War does not need an invitation. And for the unprepared, it comes even sooner. So we must have a deterrent force to repel threats to our sovereignty by conventional means,” he stressed.

“Let’s take, as an illustration, the invasion of Ukraine last February to illustrate the challenges of the Brazilian Army, which are certainly challenges for its sister forces, the Navy and the Air Force. It is not a luxury for a sovereign country to have armed forces that can be deployed,” he added.

According to the general, “war can be defined simply as an act of violence in which one side tries to impose its will on the other. From another point of view, we can say that peace is the absence of war.”

The general also pointed out that it is the state’s responsibility to allocate budgetary resources for defense. “The National Defense Strategy stipulates that at least 2% of the country’s gross domestic product should be spent preparing the armed forces. The responsibility for meeting and satisfying the national defense requirements does not lie exclusively with the military. On the contrary, this is the responsibility of the Brazilian state.”

Regarding the war in Ukraine, he cited “cyber warfare, economic constraints and blockades, the adversaries’ attempt to impose a certain narrative, the threat of using nuclear weapons, the perception of weak and strong leaders at the global level, and the moral value of troops in confrontation,” highlighting these issues as “part of military training.”

“History shows us once again that war, or the possibility of war, creates an inseparable link between the military and the nation,” he concluded.

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