President Joe Biden slammed Sunday’s attacks by supporters of former President Jair Bolsonaro in Brazil as “outrageous” as condemnations poured in from around the world against mobs that stormed the corridors of power in Brasilia.
Biden delivered his one-word verdict to reporters and then tweeted to secure his support for Brazil’s new leader, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, after pro-Bolsonaro protesters stormed Congress, the Supreme Court and the presidential palace. in Brasilia to protest the far- the loss of power of the right holder.
I condemn the assault on democracy and the peaceful transfer of power in Brazil. The democratic institutions of Brazil have our full support and the will of the Brazilian people must not be undermined. I hope to continue working with @LulaOficial.
— President Biden (@POTUS) January 8, 2023
“I condemn the assault on democracy and the peaceful transfer of power in Brazil. The democratic institutions of Brazil have our full support and the will of the Brazilian people must not be undermined. I look forward to continuing to work with @LulaOficial,” the president wrote. from United States.
As part of an outpouring of support for Lula following the dazzling scenes in the Brazilian capital, Argentine President Alberto Fernández also criticized the “coup attempt” by Bolsonaro supporters.
Other South American leaders in Chile, Colombia and Venezuela deplored the mob action, and French President Emmanuel Macron tweeted his support for Lula, the leftist who took office as Brazil’s new president a week ago.
The will of the Brazilian people and the democratic institutions must be respected! oh president @LulaOficial I can count on the unconditional support of France.
—Emmanuel Macron (@EmmanuelMacron) January 8, 2023
“The will of the Brazilian people and democratic institutions must be respected!” Macron tweeted.
The European Union’s top foreign affairs official, Josep Borrell, tweeted that he was “appalled by the acts of violence and the illegal occupation of the Brasilia seat of government by violent extremists today…
“Brazilian democracy will prevail over violence and extremism,” he added.
The attack “cannot leave us indifferent,” Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni tweeted.
Such an attack on government offices is “unacceptable and incompatible with any form of democratic dissent,” continued the far-right leader, who called for a “return to normalcy.”
The Twitter account of Democrats in the US Senate foreign relations committee noted that the looting of Brasilia came nearly two years after supporters of then-President Donald Trump stormed the US Capitol. in an attempt to nullify the 2020 election, leaving five dead.
“Trump’s legacy continues to poison our hemisphere,” the tweet read.
Around the Americas, the reaction was particularly swift from leaders ideologically sympathetic to Lula.
Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador tweeted: “Lula is not alone, he has the support of the progressive forces of his country, of Mexico, of the Americas and of the world.”
Chilean President Gabriel Boric denounced “this cowardly and vile attack on democracy” and said Lula’s government has the “total support” of Chile.
Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro, an authoritarian leftist, condemned what he called “neo-fascist groups” seeking to overthrow Lula.
More convictions came from all over Latin America.
The president of Cuba, Miguel Díaz-Canel, expressed his solidarity and condemned what he described as anti-democratic acts destined to “generate chaos and disrespect the popular will.”
Bolivian Foreign Minister Rogelio Mayta said that the events showed that Latin America faces the challenge of “defending our democracies by preventing hate speech…fratricidal violence and anti-democratic actions from triumphing.”
