Brazilian foreign minister resigns under pressure from Bolsonaro’s political base

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Diplomat Ernesto Araújo decided to resign as chancellor on Monday, as Brazil becomes the world epicenter of the pandemic, with an average of over 2,500 deaths daily.

The information began to circulate after Araújo communicated, through his chief of staff, diplomat Pedro Wolny, to Itamaraty secretaries and other subordinates that he would resign.

The intense pressures of the last days from the National Congress and representatives of the economic power forced President Jair Bolsonaro to change the leadership of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, led until now by the most ideological wing of his Government.

Araújo, a fervent anti-communist and Trump supporter, is considered to be largely responsible for the fact that the country has not managed to buy from China and other markets sufficient doses to carry out a mass vaccination that would allow a glimpse on the horizon of some economic recovery.

The pandemic management is beginning to affect Bolsonaro’s politics decisively more than a year after the first cases. Although he retains the firm support of a third of the Brazilian electorate, more pragmatic sectors that supported him in 2018 to prevent PT from returning to power are moving away from the president as Brazil adds up coronavirus deaths.

The queues to get vacancies in the ICU and the slowness with which vaccination progresses -because Brazil started negotiating late and rejected several offers from laboratories- have influenced the criticism and the demand that Bolsonaro removes Araújo.

Last week, more than ten senators called for his resignation at a hearing in the legislature. Over the weekend, a letter circulated with the support of 300 diplomats also calling for his removal.

Source: El Pais/EFE